Reports: Knicks Not Interested In Trading For Suns’ Kevin Durant

According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post and Steve Popper of Newsday, the New York Knicks are not interested in trading for Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant. 

The Suns will trade Durant this offseason. 

Phoenix and Durant’s business partner, Boardroom CEO Rich Kleiman, have met multiple times over the past week and are sifting through trade scenarios. 

Durant, 36, has one year left on his contract. The superstar will make $54.7 million next season. 

Durant turns 37 in September. The small forward averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists for the Suns this season while shooting 52.7% from the field, 43.0% from beyond the arc and 83.9% from the free-throw line.

One of the greatest scorers in NBA history, Durant has career averages of 27.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Golden State Warriors, Brooklyn Nets and Suns.

KD won two championships and two Finals MVPs with the Warriors but hasn’t gotten back to the NBA Finals since leaving Golden State in 2019. 

The Suns missed the playoffs this year despite having Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. They were so putrid that they didn’t even make the play-in tournament. 

Mike Budenholzer was fired as head coach after just one season in the desert. He was replaced by Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott.

The Knicks made the conference finals this year for the first time since 2000. They lost to the Indiana Pacers in six games and stunningly fired Tom Thibodeau as head coach. 

Thibodeau, who has coached the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves, was hired by the Knicks in 2020. He went 226-174 in the regular season and 24-23 in the postseason and won the 2021 Coach of the Year Award.