NBA rumors continue to link two-time Finals MVP Kevin Durant to the Boston Celtics in a hypothetical trade that would send Jaylen Brown to the Big Apple as part of a broader package.
Boston’s interest in swapping the 25-year-old Brown, their best play in the NBA Finals this past June, for an aging Durant never really made sense. It just seemed to silly.
Apparently, that’s the case. A recent report from Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe cites sources close to the situation in concluding that there “have not even been any real discussions of substance” between the Celtics and Nets.
KD to Boston rumors picked up recently when he was seen working out with Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum. However, that seems to be a mere coincidence more than anything else.
Related: Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown and the NBA’s top-50 players of 2022
The Boston Celtics are fine without Kevin Durant
Early last season, reports surfaced that Boston’s brass didn’t necessarily believe that Tatum and Brown can lead a championship contender. That changed in short order. After starting 25-25, Boston finished the regular season by winning 26 of its past 32.
The team then defeated the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Playoffs before falling to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals in six games.
Boston Celtics front office head Brad Stevens then spent the early portion of the summer providing Boston with reinforcements. That included a blockbuster trade for star guard Malcolm Brogdon and signing underrated veteran forward Danilo Gallinari.
There’s absolutely no reason for the Boston Celtics to break up a good thing. With this report leaking, there’s also a chance that the Celtics pushed it to the media in order to salvage things between Brown and the organization. He was not too happy about being brought up in trade talks in the first place.
As for Jayson Tatum, he didn’t completely shoot down the idea of swapping Brown and assets for Durant. But he defended his star teammate and the current iteration of the Celtics amid trade talks.
Related: Boston Celtics’ standing in Sportsnaut’s most-recent NBA power rankings
“I played with [Durant] during the Olympics. Obviously, he’s a great player, but that’s not my decision. I love our team. I love the guys that we got. We got two new pieces [in Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari]. I love our team. I just go out there and play with my teammates. I don’t put that [general manager] hat on to make decisions.”
Boston Celtics’ jayson tatum on Kevin Durant trade talks
Perhaps, the Celtics can now put an end to this conversation and prepare for the 2022-23 season with the expectation of repeating as Eastern Conference champs. Said run begins Oct. 18 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
As to where Durant stands with the Nets, he offered the organization an ultimatum in a recent meeting with owner Joseph Tsai. That included either firing head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks or trading him. Said ultimatum backfired after recent comments from Tsai himself.
The Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers have been bandied about as potential landing spots for Durant. Phoenix seems to be out of the running after matching the Indiana Pacers contract offer to then-restricted free agent Deandre Ayton. Miami doesn’t have the assets to meet Brooklyn’s asking price. Meanwhile, Philadelphia would be foolish to include young guard Tyrese Maxey as the centerpiece in and deal for Durant.
Durant signed a four-year extension ahead of the 2021-22 season. He’s locked in on said deal, leading to speculation that this process could last through the summer and heading into the 2022-23 campaign.