NBA analyst Bill Simmons solves the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks issues regarding this proposed trade idea.
Heading into the offseason, the Phoenix Suns are at a crossroads regarding key decisions regarding the future of superstar Kevin Durant.
Previously, Durant’s name appeared in many rumors during the NBA trade deadline. Both dealt with that uncertainty, but Durant’s departure from Phoenix appears to be inevitable in the summer.
With that in mind, veteran NBA analyst Bill Simmons proposed a megatrade between the Suns and the New York Knicks on an episode of his podcast.
Durant could turn 37 during the 2025-26 NBA season, but the slim Shinigami is on a massive salary of $54.7 million.
With that in mind, if the Suns and Knicks want to engage in trade, matching their salary is key to the potential move. Simmons believes that Karl Anthonytown’s direct exchange for Durant will work for both teams.
“The town of Durant. I think there’s a year left in Durant, but I can extend him. I think the salary actually works,” Simmons said. “The town has a history of friendship with Booker if you remember. They were kids and they were the same agents so they know each other.”
He repeated the Devin Booker factors in this hypothetical trade idea.
“If they don’t have a lot of outs with Durant, if you’re the sun, if you don’t have many ways to get better, Booker loves town, I think they’re still friends, that’s a way out of Durant business,” he added.
But does a direct swap between two teams work? As far as their current roster is concerned, the answer is no.
The Sands will also need to absorb Ariel Fukulti’s veteran minimum contract and be able to regain the amount of salary they’re sending, so they’ll need to absorb Ariel Fukulti’s minimum contract to be able to make this trade.
Reports show that Knicks players and coaches were irritated by the lack of effort on the defensive side of the town’s floor.
If the Knicks traded cats, it would probably make many members of the organization happy, and that’s what Simmons thinks as well.
“If you’re the Knicks who have a run for the past year with Durant, you can talk to Mitchell Robinson for 30 minutes, you’ll leave the town’s defense business, you’ll sell in some way, you’ll be out of Randle, you’ve come out of town and you’ve come out of town,” Simmons concluded.
Durant, 36, is not an elite defender, but he is still better than the town, at least in terms of striving at the end of the court.
So is this a profitable deal for both teams? Only time can tell if the general managers of both organizations agree with Simmons’ ideas.