Kevin Durant Explains Summer Trade Request
Over the offseason, NBA superstar Kevin Durant made quite a splash on the basketball world after he requested a requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets.
Durant eventually set a few ultimatums and while it appeared he was on his way out of the organization, he eventually agreed to return to the team this season. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t have some real complaints.
In an interview with Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, Durant got honest about his trade request, revealing his true motivation for wanting to leave his team.
KD bares it All
“It wasn’t difficult at all to request a trade because it was about ball,” Durant said .
Ultimately, Durant said that he requested a trade because the team was not functioning well as a unit. He also knew that the blame would ultimately fall on him when the team struggled
”I had some complaints in the summer, and my complaints were not about just me; it was about how we are moving as a unit,” Durant said. “I want us to be respected out here in the basketball world. I don’t want players to look at us and say, ‘Oh man, these [expletive] are full of s–t. That’s not the type of team I want to be on.’ So when we’re all playing like s–t, you know the one person they’re going to look at. That’s why I requested a trade.”
Most of the teams in the league reached out to the Nets regarding a possible Durant trade. The Phoenix Suns were viewed as the top potential destination for the 34-year-old. The Miami Heat and Boston Celtics became candidates to trade for Durant, as well.
What does the Future holds for KD?
No suitor met Brooklyn's lofty asking price of quality NBA players and future first-round draft picks. With four years left on his contract, Durant had little choice but to accept the Nets' decision to keep him.
Following a 2-5 start to this season, Brooklyn parted ways with Nash and replaced him with Vaughn, who had been a Nets assistant since 2016. The Sacramento Kings blew out the Nets 153-121 Wednesday night, giving Brooklyn a 6-9 record. The Nets are the No. 12 seed in the Eastern Conference and out of the playoff picture.