The Brooklyn Nets have reportedly traded Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns.
Durant has previously expressed interest in moving to Phoenix and finally got his wish. On Thursday morning, ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski said that the Suns’ new owner Mat Ishbia pushed to finalize Durant’s trade.
According to ESPN, the trade is considered one of the biggest blockbuster deals in NBA history. The deal includes the Nets trading Durant and TJ Warren for Mills Bridges, Cam Johnson, and Jae Crowder, in addition to four first-round picks and a 2028 pick swap.
The deal comes just a few days after the Nets traded Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.
In 2019, Durant and Irving signed a free agent deal with the Nets in an attempt to build a super team. The Nets eventually added James Harden and Blake Griffin to their rosters, but their time with the team was short-lived after two seasons. In addition, the Nets also replaced head coach Kenny Atkinson with Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash, who Jacque Vaughn later replaced.
At the peak of the Nets’ revamping, Durant was confident in the direction the team was headed and said he loved “what we’re building” in Brooklyn.
“I think the culture and the spirit around the game is something we’ve tried to cultivate from Day 1,” Durant previously said. “And everybody brings their part to it. Everybody is valued. From the starting guy to the last guy on the bench. We all value each other’s input.”
In 2021, Durant signed a four-year, $194 million extension with the Nets despite only playing 35 regular season games during the 2020-2021 season.
In other NBA news, the Los Angeles Lakers also agreed to trade Russell Westbrook to the Utah Jazz in a three-team deal just hours before the 2023 NBA trade deadline.
