Kevin Durant was dealt to the Phoenix Suns ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline in what was objectively the period’s most consequential move.
That said, the only reason that swap happened was because of Durant’s one-time teammate, Kyrie Irving.
With about a week to go before the NBA Trade Deadline, Irving tried to finesse a long-term deal out of the Brooklyn Nets. When they pushed back, he demanded a trade.
Ultimately, Irving was sent to the Dallas Mavericks – leading to a domino effect of Durant going to Phoenix.
This week, Durant spoke to the media and revealed how he truly felt about how everything unfolded with Irving and the Nets.
“I was upset that we couldn’t finish. I thought we had some good momentum… It was a blow to our team.”
Kevin Durant on Kyrie Irving’s trade requestpic.twitter.com/xMidFSU8eL
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) February 16, 2023
“I was upset that we couldn’t finish,” Durant said.
“I thought we had some good momentum. We were finally building the culture that we always wanted. I didn’t know what was going on with Kyrie and his situation with the organization. I didn’t really focus on that. It was a blow to our team. It took away our identity. He was a huge, huge part of what we do.”
Durant’s brutal honesty in this particular instance was refreshingly surprising. This is a guy whose response to Irving’s initial trade demand raised some eyebrows, and who refused to even condemn Irving for some of his off-the-court transgressions.
Now it appears that their relationship has finally reached a tipping point.
Luka is winning both on and off the court. https://t.co/0JG2cuijXA
— Game 7 (@game7__) February 17, 2023
Durant’s fit with the Suns will be fascinating to watch after the All-Star Break.
If he ends up winning another title in Phoenix, obviously it will feel as though Irving did him a huge favor.
Should Durant come up short, though – then it will be difficult to shake the impression that Durant and Irving somehow squandered one of the greatest super teams in NBA history.
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
