With The Athletic's Kelly Iko reporting that the Suns have lowered their asking price for Kevin Durant, could the Pelicans get involved? Well, right now, some of the top suitors around the league for the 36-year-old are the Rockets, Timberwolves and Spurs. With packages featuring a mix of win-now guys and lottery picks.
KD is coming off an unreal year for someone in their 16th season: 26.6 points per game, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.6 assists, all while shooting 52.7% from the field. Durant is still one of the league's most prolific scorers, yet his age and injury history leave teams worried about giving up young talent to acquire him. But with the Pelicans having a new front office and a ownership group that wants butt's in seats and exciting basketball, why wouldn't the Pels throw an offer at Phoenix to bring in the greatest scorer of all time.
The offer the Suns can't refuse
This would make New Orleans the most interesting team in the NBA. When healthy and ideal, the starting five would be Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy, Kevin Durant, Zion Williamson, and Yves Missi. That would honestly be one of the most exciting high-firepower offenses ever. Kd's fit with this team would be seamless. We've seen him play off-ball many times in his career, and it's a beautiful sight.
Defenders would be perplexed with the task of scheming for an offence that could have Zion dominating the post, Trey Murphy navigating screens and working off-ball to get open looks. Well, KD is just being KD, breaking down defenders slowly in isolation. Meanwhile, Yves Missi is catching lobs and scoring putbacks, all while Dejounte Murray is conducting the orchestra.
But in a trade like this, the Pels aren't only getting the greatest scorer ever, they're also getting one of the league's most elite snipers: Grayson Allen. With NOLA ranking in the bottom 5 in every single three-point statistic, adding a 42.6% three-point shooter off the bench would be lethal. The 29th overall pick is another valuable asset, a place where this team could add an experienced college guy like Kam Jones or Ryan Kalkbrenner, who is NBA-ready from day one.
On the Phoenix side, this deal would give the Suns a top-five defender in the world in Herb Jones, something they desperately need. They ranked 28th in the NBA in defensive rating this past season. It would also allow them to have a lottery pick, something they haven't had since 2020, when they picked Jalen Smith.
In addition to getting a blue-chip guy to help build around Devin Booker, they would also get a pair of good veterans in CJ McCollum and Kelly Olynyk. These two would be valuable as trade chips, but could also be part of their team next year if the goal was to remain a competitive team in the Western Conference.
Many people will argue that acquiring KD is pointless at this stage in his career, but you can't be afraid to make gutsy calls when you are a team like the Pelicans. A move like this not only could propel this team to a championship, but also having Kevin Durant mentor Trey Murphy could set him up for an all-time great career. This move would make the Pelicans all in something their franchise has never been.