REALISTIC Kevin Durant Trades Phoenix Suns Can Make TODAY
you know usually I don’t like to spoil these things but we do have a mystery guest today kevin Durant joins the program no I’m kidding should be fun psychos and sickos unite for a trade machine Tuesday edition of PHNX Suns whole squad back for the first time in a long time on a trade machine Tuesday coming to you live from Studio K presented by Circle K join the Inner Circle for free by downloading the Circle K app today terms and conditions apply at participating locations visit circlek.com for full details i’m Eric that’s Gerald that’s Steven we got the freckled mamba behind the Mac Eritton making all the magic happen but of course none of this matters without you here in the chat live i’m talking Wow Factor Michael Ay Soldier Carlos Leo Guju Ashley Grant Levi oh my gosh it’s everybody in the chat of course everybody on YouTube after the fact hit that like button hit that subscribe button and our beautiful wonderful audio listeners thank you all so much five star reviews go a long way in growing the show get your predictions off in the chat not just where Kevin Durant ends up but who is our mystery guest at the end of this show we have a very special mystery guest joining us and I am probably the most excited about it and I’ll I’ll explain why a little bit later but Gerald you cracked your fingers you dusted off the old keyboard and you got a new trade article for KD too bad there’s not a lot going on yeah there’s not a lot going on not a lot of updates but just minor minuscule granular updates with no real traction behind them i I’ve been away from this for like a month and I’m already sick of just nothing new happening but we’re just regurgitating the same stuff so a lot of that is what my article was about today regurgitating the same stuff because we’re basically a way to sell it Gerald i know it’s great die Hards only i have mama birding KD morsels to all of the public here okay Stephen how are you doing does it even matter at this point it does it matters to me i’m doing I’m doing great man a lot of fun basketball going on um might be getting to the end of the finals potentially which is going to naturally bring the Durant stuff that’s already been secondary to the finals to the forefront of everything going into the draft so feels like we’re getting around that last corner and a finish line is surfacing sometime soon yeah shout out Manny Fresh in the chat who’s always a big fan of Gerald says “Congrats on your son i also became a dad this past Thursday that’s awesome congratulations fresh and happy belated Father’s Day did you name your kid Goku can somebody name their damn kid Goku around here you probably can’t no don’t be ridiculous hey don’t be ridiculous you want to see that okay first of all ain’t no kids coming anytime soon okay so let’s just get that clear ain’t no baby Goku Rubies running around here okay we are we are way way way off topic hi Dad in the chat nice to see you uh okay but there you go good job that’s gross screw you that’s gross all right i feel like my efforts are finally you have single-handedly saved the relationship between me and my dad you know uh I didn’t do nothing for you thank you thank you Stephen okay also thank you Stephen for jumping on with me for a trending mini pod earlier today you and I unpacked all of the latest reports that that Gerald had mentioned we’re getting bits and pieces and morsels let’s go through just quickly rapid fire here to keep people up to date if you want us to dive a little bit more in detail check out that trending mini pod already live on YouTube and on audio but Gerald last night The Athletic reported that the Spurs are Kevin Rant’s number one trade destination shams has reported that Miami and Houston are two most likely teams right now but Minnesota still being aggressive kurt Goldsberry is reporting the Suns want the number two pick and Stefan Castle there’s a lot going around even Brian Winto saying the Suns might potentially consider keeping Kevin Durant out of the whole sea of rumors and reports that we’ve seen with KD today what stands out to you the most what feels like it has the most weight to it there was a line from that athletic article that was something to the effect of the Suns are hoping that Kevin Durant will warm up to the idea of a Timberwolves trade that was interesting to me because it says a lot if that is true it says a lot about what the Suns want in return in a in a package for Kevin Durant and it’s probably not what a lot of fans are going to want it’s probably not geared more towards younger players or towards multiple draft picks it’s geared more towards guys that can come in and help you compete right now and I think a lot of us agree that like they’re not rebuilding by any means they’re retooling they want to still be competitive next year and potentially make that step back towards contention the following year but I don’t know that there’s a Kevin Durant trade that’s going to bring you back players that can help you win right now um so the Minnesota thing is kind of interesting to me kind of worrisome um and it could just be a leverage game of trying to get the other preferred offers to raise their game as well and Stephen we talked about this morning Dwayne Rankin over at the Republic reporting that the Suns have no leverage in the Kevin Durant trade mainly because everybody knows that KD wants and will be traded and his age uh we touched more on that on the trending pod so I think that we have that covered if you want more in-depth on that check that 10-minute conversation out from earlier today we have a lot of trades to get to today so let’s stop burying the lead these are just some of the trades from Gerald’s diehardonly article that you can find at gophnx.com plus a couple extra trades in there as well still plenty of meat on the bone in that article for you to go check out so become a diehard today and get to reading but let’s kick things off let’s get to our very first trade of the day gerald it’s Suns Clippers yeah so we’re going through right off the top the main six um suitors for Kevin Durant and we’re going through what I conceive as their best realistic offer so trying to marry the two things together and I got to start with the Clippers because I don’t think I Zubots will be on the table i wish that he would be but there’s a limited number of ways they can make the math work if they actually are interested and Zubots is a guy that if you’re the Suns and you’re trading KD to the Clippers he would have to be included he might be the most underrated player in the NBA right now um was the most improved player candidate defensive player of the year candidate made an alldefensive team he averaged like a career-high 16 or 17 points career-high in rebounds he’s good in drop coverage like he’s the center that the Suns have needed for the last two years when they were trying to contend um Norm Pal played at an all-star level i’m not crazy about the fit here in Phoenix he would be a super six-man even though they have like 17 players at the two guard spot already uh in airplane mode he’s steadily improved throughout his career good defender good wing guy you get a pick right before the pick that you already have at number 29 so not that valuable but thoughts on this potential deal um a little behind the curtain me and Gerald talked about the Spra dynamic of KD and Miami and how that factors into why they’re why they might have a certain level of interest that maybe even goes past what public perception is i’d imagine if this trade is even entertained it’s the same just in a different context for the Clippers with Tailoo and his Team USA ties and just all of the back and forth having gone up against Kevin Durant as a coach for 15 plus years now at this point so I can’t see them doing it because Zoo is everything that that team’s identity has kind of went into whether it be you thinking about Harden leading their offense but who’s doing everything that makes Harden great screening the short role the blueco collar efforts and then defensively more than anything zoom is that you take him out of there that team looks completely different um Durant and Kawawaii is very interesting though i will say that i mean it’s interesting i just I can’t I imagine they bring back Harden too of course so I can’t imagine they get rid of Zoo i it would be again I I think a coup to get Zoo from the the Clippers even some people in the chat saying that’s not enough draft capital we talk about you talk about Khlo Wear you know we talk about the number two pick or these kind of pie in the sky options for for Katie in a trade zoo is bar none the best current player that I’ve seen involved in in basically all if not most of these these trades that you put together Gerald that people are putting together on Twitter that we put together ourselves especially coming back to the Suns i mean we did a whole episode about could could they get Joel Embiid or Cooper Flag while you were gone for KD and obviously those are more out there i I think this is just as out there i don’t I don’t know if LA gives that up i isn’t it possible that they could technically put together a package without Zubots i think if you put like Bogdanovich Powell Jones but it’s the only alternative and at that point if you’re the n there’s no interest there like I I I like Bogdanovich but again how many two guards do you need on this what if we just put out five shooting guards for a lineup yeah and then Benson we just throw Ben Simmons in there that might be the lineup next year i will say though just just playing not even devil’s advocate but just thinking about it from a different perspective would the Clippers entertain this if they had another option at the five in their back pocket like a contingency plan okay if we can get KD obviously losing Zoo hurts but if we can find somebody that does 75 80% of what he does what he brought to us yeah with KD thinking outside the box it’s more feasible then but you have to have that domino lined up they currently don’t for sure and Tony the chat says “Keep this in mind the Clippers haven’t won much they keep getting only so far they might want a change i And I don’t think that it’s out of the question for the Clippers to do something but out of all the pieces for them to move I I just don’t know why they would do Zoo.” Uh some people are saying “Who’s the special guest who’s the mystery guest?” Why would we tell you who the mystery guest is it’s a mystery it’s a mystery and it is All City uh spirit week before we keep going here I want to shout out Big Brothers Big Sisters uh we are trying to raise $10,000 across all city we are currently at almost $25,000 across all of our markets help us out there’s a donate button below the chat button not super chats you can still drop super chats we’ll still read them it still helps us out but donate donate donate to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America we’re doing all this for them uh we have a mystery guest later today musical chairs tomorrow fundraiser day on Thursday and a dieh hard day where the die hards plan our show on Friday luckily there’s nothing going on during spirit week for the Suns so uh let’s uh let’s knock another trade out here before we hit our first break Gerald yeah so let’s go with the Raptors trade the other dark horse that’s kind of come into the woodworks here over the last week or so uh Emanuel Quickley Yakob Purle the number nine overall pick and a 2029 first round pick um we we’ve heard from Jake Fischer uh recently that the Raptors are mulling either Quickly or Barrett it can’t be quickly Barrett and Paul Portal uh the math doesn’t add up there so it would either have to be Quickly or it have to be Barrett i am very much on the record that R.J barrett is a terrible fit for next to Devin Booker um I like Quickly better he’s a good defender he’s a little undersized but he’s been consistently averaging 17 and five over the last couple seasons um good defender yaka Purle we all know how I felt about him he’s a little past his prime but a decent defender um who’s been kind of wasting away in Toronto you get a better pick than you would get if you got your own Rockets pick back and in addition to that you get an extra first round pick i don’t know why the Raptors do this everyone we’ve talked to doesn’t know why the Raptors do this but if they want to do it this is what it would probably look like i don’t love it i mean the number nine pick is definitely something it’s the I think the best realistic pick that you’re looking at Stephen that alongside 10 with with Houston purle is something uh he’s definitely past his prime but is a serviceable starting center and and quickly is against something but uh I’m kind of with Chad i don’t know about you Stephen i’m not the biggest fan of most Toronto deals well I like the number nine for sure yeah I think getting nine and still having 29 on the back end that you could inevitably flip if you wanted to and naturally there will be a lot of teams that would love to have that pick um probably more than you thought going into the draft i think that’s something that will help for sure get you some maybe win out talent to go in addition to this trade i think quickly is a piece that makes sense around Devin Booker especially with the ambiguity at the point guard position right now but naturally he’s also somebody that you can flip because he’s still very young and he still has attention that he would garner on the market as well and then obviously naturally you get a get a starting caliber center which feels like the one word we’ve been speaking about more than anything not Kevin Durant specific and that’s getting a starting caliber center for this team right BS in the chat says if that’s the best offer do it there’s also uh somebody said it’s big 10 Jed says papa Gerald they’re in the east that’s why you do it how much of a factor is it to you Gerald that you don’t if you’re in this position for the Suns and you’re trading Kevin Durant how much are you thinking about what conference he goes to i think you’re thinking about what is the best return for the Suns i I’ve consistently stood on this and I think it matters more if you’re a contending team but I don’t think the Suns are looking around the West like who’s going to be our main competition they’re just trying to look ahead to the next six months of how can we put a good team around Devin Booker for next season that gives us a path to being great in the near future so as much as it would hurt to see Kevin Durant you know on the Spurs or like god forbid the Lakers hadn’t traded for Luca Donuch and they were in the running for this that would be gross but you do what gets you the best return and puts your team in the best position um if you can trade him to the East over a Western team I think that gives you a little bit of edge there you would rather trade him away from your conference but ultimately you get the best return possible i think that’s the there’s a lot of give and take but I think that’s probably the biggest positive is that you don’t have to pigeon hole yourself to say we’re not doing deals with Western Conference teams because we don’t want anybody in our way you want to get out your own way before anything else and I think that’s a major positive because imagine if you only had to look at the leverage that Miami will have knowing that you’re trying to contend knowing you don’t want to send them to any of the teams in the West is Miami literally the only relevant team that’s been in the Durant sweep stakes right now right so I think that certainly matters in terms of what we’re looking at right now to me it’s kind of the same thing as Kevin Durant’s desires on where he wants to go it’s something that you can take in and if you’re weighing two equal options it might be a good tiebreaker right like hey we have a a a good offer from Miami and we have a good offer from Houston and we’re stuck we’re tied between those two let’s just send him out east so we don’t have to play him multiple times a year right so that’s kind of for me the same way it’s hey if we have two offers that we like equally and KD wants to go to one of those teams let’s not make him too mad let’s send him there but I’m not letting that dictate what the package coming back is if it’s definitely not the best one that you could get we have a ton more trades we have a mystery guest keep on sounding off in the comments who you think that mystery guest is drop your own trades in the chat maybe drop a super chat if you want us to read it here live and donate to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America we will be back after this break talking more KD trades gerald yes tell me how many times you’ve been I’m just now that you’re back i’m just using you in every single ad read sure uh how many times have you made a bet or a deal or a handshake with somebody and they skimped out on you never okay never mind hold people accountable you hold people accountable then you’ll love Vimi vi is the first of its kind person-toperson betting app and there’s finally an app where you can bet anyone anything at any time and they’re proud to partner with us to launch a brand new way to bet wagers can be for free or for money bet on anything like sports video games like Madden 2K COD fantasy matchups golf games poker nights push-up contests like the baby race at the Suns game if you want to sign up Goku for that you can bet on it with the other parents around you with Vimeie you don’t have to worry about the Venmo guy you know what I mean want to see the Venmo guy he says “Oh yeah I’ll Venmo you.” “Oh Stephen don’t worry about it i’ll Venmo you.” You don’t have to worry about that with Vimei download the Vimei app and play today and make sure you use code PHNX is available on the App Store and Google Play vime me anyone anything and anytime also big shout out to Branded Bills you can see behind me a bunch of brand another other way it’s mirrored on the screen those guys uh the Brandon Bills hats they’re amazing i always love throwing on my brand of Bill’s hats specifically when I’m being active whether it’s hiking playing basketball or it’s just damn hot outside which is always the fabric is so breathable it looks so good and it doesn’t deteriorate it doesn’t fall apart at the seams the logo is made out of a nice plastic plus if you’re trying to get your own branded bills represent your own company your own fantasy football league whatever it might be the best place to get gear that stands apart from the crowd it’s Branded Bills i’m talking snapbacks truckers fitted beanies Ortiz branded Bills has you covered with performance and with styles they have partnerships with elite programs elite schools like the Arizona State University and you know charity work with you know UVA if you even care uh partner with the Phoenix Suns you get their hats at PHX Arena and of course our local company out of Mesa Arizona head to brand billills.com use code P bphnx for 15% off your first order that’s code BB phnx for 15% off your first order all right uh we have a super chat guessing our mystery guest they say “Is it Flex from Jersey?” It’s not but I will tell you this i’m I’m talking to to our boy Flex and uh I think we’re going to be able to get something together with him sometime in the next couple of weeks so uh hopefully we can get him on here and get his thoughts on what’s been a very very busy uh Suns off season yes all right back to trades back to back to trades okay so we had a Clippers one we had a Toronto one let’s go to the Timberwolves Gerald yeah the last um dark horse but probably the strongest one and bas this is what I’ve been hearing this is what a lot of people have been reporting timberwolves have been the most aggressive for Kevin Durant potentially the biggest hangup here is that Kevin Durant doesn’t want to play there doesn’t want to extend there um this is going to come down to for the Timberwolves it’s either Julius Randall opting in to his player option i think it’s like 31 million uh and then being trade eligible as the main centerpiece or the Suns go for Rudy Gobear and I think Julius Randall he’s he might be the better individual player he could help the Suns in terms of being a walking paint touch a guy who gets downhill i think when the Timberwolves asked him to be kind of their point forward he really thrived for them and he played well for them in the playoffs too during the run to the conference finals but I don’t think he’s the guy that you want to build a Kevin Durant trade around because he has one year left on his deal if he opts in and so you’re either trading Kevin Durant for one year of Julius Randall or for a long-term Julius Randle extension and I’m not sure which of those scenarios would be worse rudy Gobear we clown him we have consistently clowned him for years for various reasons he can change your defense single-handedly he is the exact type of bid that would big that would thrive under Jordan and we know that this was a bottom five defense last year so it’s either Rudy Goar or Julius Randall that you’re building a Wolves package around dante Evenzo’s thrown in for another two guard uh to salary fill things you’re hoping that Rob Dillingham and that number 17 pick can turn into something i’m not convinced either one has a ton of value but they’re kind of sweeteners in here i imagine Rudy Gobear a Rudy Goar le defense hasn’t been worse than 15th no in the league since what 2014 maybe his bench days in Utah yeah exactly exactly to that point i know it’s not going to be something that Suns fans probably want to hear at least most Suns fans but the ones that can kind of see the vision of what’s trying to be put together you have to start somewhere and the one way to try to undo the things of the past two seasons that left a lot more to be desired whether it be in a timely sense or in a game by-game sense in terms of the defense last season bring in Rudy Goar he’s going to completely shift your culture the same way that a player like Devin Booker is an offense in and of himself Rudy Gobear is equally but even better on the defensive end because he’s literally an all-time great that shape that shape shifts everything gerald one of the things that you missed while you were gone uhhuh is I Well so it kind of started while you were here the Rudy Goar the Rudy Go Bear stuff the Goar It continued so I don’t like Rudy Gobear i I I want to make that clear okay the dude is walking backwards into the Hall of Fame and bar none would be the best center probably in Suns history if he walked through the door alvin Adams DeAndre Aton right marine Gortat like Shaq Shaq again and I don’t think Go Bear’s at the prime of his career but it it is it is the best option probably that you have as an established center right now now would I rather have him over a KL Wear or a Walker Kesler or a Zubots or what no I wouldn’t but I’m starting to talk myself a little bit more into a Go Bear led Minnesota deal now I like your deal but I would like I believe Minnesota has the 30th or the 31st pick i think the 31st pick in this year’s draft i believe Minnesota has i’d like that or maybe some more future capital considering you know Go Bear’s value is not nearly as high as it was a couple of years ago dancenzo’s value isn’t extremely high and Dillingham obviously is a rookie on a contending team didn’t have a lot to offer there and you’re taking a swing but he is a former top 10 pick i I definitely think that if you are able to get this package it’s not necessarily leaning into a rebuild especially if you get two picks this year but I think it’s enough to feel the competitive team around book this year to maybe teach Oso and Nick Richards a couple of things from Go Bear on the defensive side of things and a couple draft picks to me realistically speaking Gerald this feels like one of the trades that I could see popping up in my notifications on the timeline it does and it it feels like right now there’s a leverage game between Kevin Durant’s people who are saying Kevin Durant doesn’t want to go there he’s not going to extend there and the Suns who are saying “Well we kind of like this Timberwolves offer if Kevin Durant came around maybe we could like part of that could be about the Timberwolves.” And part of that could be about “Hey San Antonio Houston Miami if you want this guy you’ve got to beat this you’ve got to give us a little bit more than you’re willing to give.” Hopefully the gambit works if that’s what it is uh if it is a Rudy Gobear package it is kind of what it is but I do think this this Timberwolves package if you’re a Suns fan that wants to see this team competitive next year and not waste a year of Deon Booker’s prime this is this might be the best one that we get and I think if you’re the Timberwolves you want it to be around Randall because you’re trading for Kevin Durant you don’t want your defensive centerpiece to go out the door uh for the people saying Jaden McDaniels the math really doesn’t work out in that case and Jaden would probably be off limits anyway even if it did work out I can’t imagine Minnesota trades well speaking of trades hey look at that we have another one look at that it’s the Miami Heat uh Kevin Durant going to Miami south Beach the Suns getting Andrew Wiggins Duncan Robinson’s expiring i think it’s like $19 million salary uh they are throwing in Khil Wear which is kind of the hangup to this point and they’re throwing in the number 20 overall pick i think if you’re the Suns you push for an additional uh first round pick maybe in 2031 a year that you currently don’t have your own pick i don’t know that the Heat would budge on that since they’re not really budging on Khil Wear right now um this is a plate full of meh to me and I like wear uh but like he’s still a few years away and he’s a guy that has had a questionable mo motor in Miami questionable motor during the the pre-draft and and college process wiggins is just kind of there to fill Katie’s spot in the starting lineup and Duncan Robinson isn’t expiring and then you have a number 20 pick and number 29 maybe you can bundle those and move up a few spots but not crazy about this deal not terrible but if you’re the Suns there’s no way in hell you’re even considering it without wear included for me yeah that’s the I imagine if he was on the board already and naturally like we just got done talking about on the trending Eric you don’t go to the buffet and you you don’t just eat the veggies yeah you don’t just eat the veggies no nah you want the whole damn thing you want everything you might start with dessert first honestly let’s say basic basic buffet okay let’s talk about the important things here sure basic buffet what’s What are you looking for like what are you going for first meat clip it okay okay so that’s crazy so I get some of your concerns about wearing just just skirt right back uh I don’t I mean I never really add to that let’s just clip that uh social clip that welcome back Gerald yeah that’s great so I was talking to Damon who who works here obviously and he is a Miami Heat fan and I was telling him about the Kell Motor stuff because when we were covering the draft last year that was something that came up and and I was still really high on him and he said the moment that the Miami Heat drafted KL Wear that all of those concerns for him went out the window and watching him this year he didn’t have any of those concerns i don’t think Miami drafts somebody that’s going to have a lack of dog in them for lack of a better term especially because it wasn’t like a top 10 pick where you just pick off pedigree it was mid-first round pick for wear i I think that he’s probably one of the most coveted pieces in all of these talks that I like i know he might be a few years away but the raw potential of a guy who could play the four the five shoot threes at 71 play defense and when he’s on genuinely and this is not me trying to be hyperbolic he looks like Minyama when he’s on like when he’s shooting threes he’s 7-1 like he looks like that type of player and then Andrew Wiggins is somebody I’ve been thinking about a lot there’s a chance that you put him next to a shooting guard like Devin Booker and just tell Andrew Wiggins “Go play some damn defense and he becomes a very serviceable starter and a good fit with Book.” I think on the court Gerald yeah no I I I like Wiggins as you know a starting caliber replacement for KD obviously you’re taking a big downgrade there but the focus for Book becomes a little bit easier with a more defensive-minded wing like Wiggins um and I do like where I don’t want that to be twisted or confused or anything there have been questions about his motor i do still have those concerns just because it was one year in Miami and I think Miami is one of the teams that can get away with drafting a player like that because they have you know quote unquote heat culture because they have the right thing that’s something the Suns are still trying to establish so getting a player like that and putting him into this new thing that you’re trying to establish and expecting him to just pick it up there are some risks that come with that but on paper the just giving Devin Booker a floor spacing five a a shot blocking five would be a really nice thing to have it would be i I I definitely believe in the Khar uh potential m I think that for the loud strengths that he does have I think some people are not necessarily looking at the weaknesses that he did show and how a lot of those weaknesses were masked one because the defensive infrastructure that he was operating in in Miami with Eric Spa but also number two things look a little different and feel a lot different when you have Bam Adabio roaming around yes so and that’s not to discredit Kell because Kel’s presence which Bam has been asking for a five to play next to him unlocks the style of defense that Bam wants to play as a ror instead of having to be in the paint all the time the issue is though if there’s more drives that are directly at him like we saw from the Suns last year you can’t just plug and play outside of a Rudy Goar you can’t just plug and play any center into the Sun system and expect for it to completely up uproot the defense and all of the issues we saw last season that part of mine in addition to everything that’s taken to account with Jordan and his presser which was that he wants to play an activity based defense kel Wear is not an activity based big switching is not something that he has in his bag at this moment he can grow into that doesn’t have the quickest of feet in terms of defending in space and isolation on against centers or against guards so if he’s got a big that’s playing drop laden defense how does that shift what he wants to do with this defense can they put point of attack defenders around him to get the most out of him and that system it’s just questions for me on that part sims go crazy as a he fan in the chat saying “Chel not great defender this year.” I and I get that i have a feeling that with Jordan’s defense and I I think eventually Khalle at the four with a a defensive centered five is is the future of of what you’re looking at for him on the Heat or at uh on the Suns i I’m going to bet on that personally i’m going to bet on that guy even if there are legitimate concerns uh last bit of information here on the Heat before we take a break dive into some Spurs trades some three team trades here hit that like button hit that subscribe button phx Sun’s live five days a week Monday through Friday at 3:00 plus we’re going to do breaking news kevin Rant podcast whenever that does happen we have trending mini pods breaking down the latest reports and everything and we have a special guest at the end of the show so stick around for that luis says Duncan as in Duncan Robinson not fully guaranteed contract if you cut him you only pay 9.8 million instead of 19.8 and save approximately 30 million including penalties and taxes because the Suns are over so that is another small part of this deal Gerald it is and and you could technically I think you can replace Wiggins contract with Terry Rosier who is another expiring mhm no thank you personally but mark this down as a sentence I never thought I’d say i’d much rather have Andrew Wiggins yes absolutely but that is an alternative for those who are wondering mhm all right well we’ve got three team deals Spurs deals and a special guest we’re going to get to all of it it’s going to be another long but another banger edition of PHNX Suns right after this break why are you laughing dude omar comment sorry that’s funny listen Omar Gerald Steven Eritton if you’re trying to extend your outdoor living space because 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am the only Strawberry Swirl here okay because Wendy’s has new frosties don’t shake your head at me Stephen too late all right I’m still trying to get my hands on a Pop-Tart strawberry one but they have caramel crunch and royal brownie those are the frosty fusions they also have frosty swirls i am the strawberry swirl girl but they also have brownie batter and caramel as well it’s a new take on a classic Frosty which by the way the Frosty needed no notes it needed no additions a nice chocolate frosty and fries i mean there’s no better combination but Wendy said “Screw it we’ll make it better for you anyway.” And of course to uh not tomorrow but Thursday will be Gerald’s first ever time being on the show during Frosty Takes where we go back and we look at some of our cold takes but anyway whatever flavor you’re craving Gerald odds are they’ve got a Frosty for it if you clock in for sweet treat time anytime including midnight or later do it at Wendy’s all new Frosty flavors return on a classic got to beat Wendy’s at participating US Wendy’s locations hours may vary shout out Robert shout out Wow Factor carlo Sean Sons Digest Ashley Thousand Eyes Sparrow Stephen you’re in the chat as well love all of you coming in here on a Tuesday kiwi too donated $5 i love that for us from this Brownie batter boy i love that love that from the brownie batter boy uh by the way there are some reports i don’t know exactly how legitimate they are um because there are a lot of people who are reporting things that I don’t know who they are uh so the Spurs have bowed out i’m going to say I’m going to wait and accept that as reality until I get a little more confirmation on that leverage leverage leverage leverage leverage leverage leverage sorry we’re still a week away from the draft you can be out and back in by tomorrow no I was I was just watching I’ll go ahead and say I was watching Sister Sister last night okay nice and it was the the conga line episode where they had a birthday party and they’re doing was it just like on or did you like like you went on like Netflix or it was on but I would but legitimately something I would go back and watch on yeah so you doing the conga I love learning more about just triggered me i was like bro I just went to sleep today how does he know well we don’t know if the Spurs have actually bowed out or not so let’s go ahead and attack a Spurs trade here gerald yeah let’s go ahead devin Bell Harrison Barnes Jeremy Sohan and the number 14 pick uh there have been some disputing reports and sentiments about whether the Spurs would include the number 14 pick if I’m the Suns and I’m saying you’re not including number two you lost you sure as hell be including number 14 because I need either number two Stefan Castle at least number 14 i think Castle’s off limits i think number two is off limits mhm so now you’re kind of left with Vel who I like him better than RJ Barrett but another tricky fit next to Devin Booker because this is not a point guard this is not even really a combo guard deon Velc is a two guard um Jeremy Sohan I like the defense that he brings offensively he has pretty much I I don’t even want to say plateaued because it’s been even the first three years of his career he hasn’t shot better than 31% from three in any of those three seasons um offensively he’s got a lot to prove and then Harrison Barnes he’s again he’s kind of like the the Spurs Andrew Wiggins like a serviceable starting caliber replacement for KD nothing special can play the three or the four two-way guy um but is not going to raise you know move the needle very much for you so thoughts on Vel because he’s kind of the centerpiece here that contract is is pretty significant and you’re only getting a pick at the very end of the lottery for your trouble no thanks i’m good i mean I’ve I’ve said it over and over over the last month while you’ve been gone Gerald i cannot have my main package back for Kevin Rampia a shooting guard i can’t do that it it’s it’s too triggering and it just I I like I like Vel as a player i like Vel as a player but he’s not like this this lock down defender that people think he is spurs fans have actually laotted him as pretty inconsistent on that end and not showing a lot of growth on that end either uh I have to have the 14th pick in this deal and honestly Stephen I’m probably asking for some future draft capital if they’re not parting with two or castle yeah I would I would certainly be looking for more but at the same time leverage wise I mean you pigeon holes yourself so unless you’re unless you’re looping in a third team which I news to no one I feel like it’s going to be a three-team deal that gets Durant to a new destination you’re just going to have to be stuck if this is what you have to deal with in terms of if it’s only a two team deal that ultimately takes place but Vel I like him as a player i definitely like his prospects going forward but not with Deon Booker it feels like there’s too much overlap and if you’re doing that while already still having Bill on the roster as well with no plan at least in a relevant manner of where you might be able to you know send him to next that’s too much that’s way too much i I still believe in Vel but like you said on this particular team it just doesn’t make sense and also if you make this trade like does Grayson Allen immediately chuck his phone at a wall because he’s like “Okay cool thanks guys.” Writing’s on the wall a little bit there not not a big fan of this one no don’t love it vel with Dylan Harper Jr elsewhere not in San Antonio and obviously not in Phoenix would be fun yeah and and a three-team trade could definitely be on on the table we don’t have a three-teamer with the Spurs today but obviously we’ve done a ton of those i also think that it’s very funny that Jeremy Sohan has been trolling people on Twitter with Suns emojis and he’s in Phoenix i do respect that would love a good troller on the team uh we lost Nerk so we need some more social media presence i will say though it’s funny Gerald mentioned Harrison Barnes being the Andrew Wiggins of San Antonio it’s funny because Andrew Wiggins played the same role for the Warriors that Harrison Barnes did for the getting KD and G we’re just getting retired old Warriors wings well there’s also champions there’s a good precedent for replacing Harrison Barnes with Kevin Durant uh just just saying for the Spurs that could be something they definitely want to do oh but not for us no well doesn’t it doesn’t usually go the other way around uh last straight up two team trade here Gerald let’s talk about those Houston Rockets probably the longest love affair with Kevin Durant out of all of them yeah at the end of the day all of this feels like an attempt that the the psychological warfare that Houston and Phoenix are waging right now on what picks are going to be included because the Rockets we’ve talked about this Kevin Durant needs to be traded to a team that already has the infrastructure that is a Kevin Durant away from contending um because anything less than that just doesn’t make sense for him uh it makes sense for the Suns based on the return but like I think the Rockets are the best marriage of make sense for Kevin Durant and makes sense for the Phoenix Suns we know that they own their picks 2025 2027 2029 you are not getting all three of those picks back i don’t even know if you get two of those three picks back but if you can get Jabari Smith Jr salary filler and the number 10 pick back that’s not a terrible deal um I don’t know that Houston would do it especially if everybody is currently lowballing the Suns i don’t know if they would include Jabari Reed Shepard people you ask people they have very different opinions of his value because he didn’t really play this year but also he was a former number three pick who lit it up in summer league and looked like he might be pretty good i I just have no way of gauging this i would love to get Tar Een i think that’s a bridge too far for Houston if Jabari Green’s included um there’s a lot of mix and match options even though Stephen Adams extension kind of complicates things a little bit more and that’s the part I think I tried to mention last week and I’ll mention it again now like guess the Steven Adams part was relevant but they also pushed the deadline back for Fred Van Vleet to try to get their ducks in a row to offer him a contract extension that makes sense for him also makes sense for them so maybe clearing their books is a little bit more on the table than we’re being led on to believe mhm i think that’s something that might be relevant especially once we get closer to the to the um to the draft which feels like a deadline more than something that could go past that potentially if they wanted it to if the teams wanted it to so I think that’s going to play into it um and naturally I think Jaylen Green is going elsewhere in this in this scenario he’s not coming to Phoenix China we there was a report from Mike Scotto that they’re already scoping out like third teams for a Jaylen Green scenario so maybe Jaylen Green is is the package but he makes the least amount of sense of anyone that we’ve covered in Phoenix 100% and to those gross basketball player to those points um how would y’all feel about Dylan Brooks with Deon Bookie uh on court fit I like it i think off court those two got some stuff they got to work out for sure uh I feel like Devin has always taken to those types of competitors that he’s beefed with once he’s played with Jay cuz like Jay with the with the Celtics there was beef there between the two of them and then obviously they were good dog troy Daniel was a dog troy Daniels was an absolute dog booker has risen through the ranks in terms of who he has be sunny Williams dog for sure but yeah no I I agree with Jay Lech stop what you’re doing no it’s okay um but no I I agree with you i think Brooks he is the epitome of that mentality that they’re trying to establish here yeah and we can hate him all we want he’s a villain whatever um the antics and what he does it works it gives an identity it gives a swagger that this team has missed since Jay Crowder Javale McGee those guys were here Chris Paul were here it gives them an edge and they desperately need that as they try to build this identity and I’ll give Dylan Brooks credit he has developed his his offensive he just had a career best three-point shooting season and it was like significantly better on volume and efficiency you know you gota imagine that doesn’t continue to go up maybe drops down a little bit but it looks if he’s hitting those shots with Houston offense what is he going to do with Deon Booker when he’s on the second side and they got to shift to him i think the efficiency is probably the most impressive part there less than the actual pure like counting stats uh I I think with Brooks he he’s a great fit he’s the classic hate to play against him love to have him on your team type of player reed Shepard’s your long shot for the future and Jabari Smith Jr is hopefully the starting power forward maybe a small ball five next to Devin Booker for the foreseeable future i I think this is probably the best realistic deal you can get because you’re also adding number 10 and honestly I could see Houston doing this because as much as we don’t value Jaylen Green there are reports out there which I thought were bull crap but maybe they’re true that they actually want Jaylen Green over Devin Booker or they really like Jaylen Green and that is some offense and that’s something that they’ve been lacking you add Kevin Durant there you keep Shenun you keep Thompson you keep Van Fleet that’s a decent combination of experience and and and uh athleticism and youth and keeping Tari E in this deal as well i know there are Houston fans in the chat who saying that that’s an that’s an overpay but I I could definitely see that happening uh before we get to the three team deals here what is your guys’s favorite just straight up onetoone trade um I’d probably go Rockets i’d probably rank these Rockets Wolves Raptors Spurs Heat Clippers and I have Clippers at the bottom because I don’t think Zubots least likely if if that was on the table where would you rank that that would probably leapfrog Heat Spurs probably Raptors too i think Zubots might be the best player of any deal that we’ve talked about you could you know pick him or go Bear i think that I think it rivals the Rockets personally i think it’s just under the Rockets deal what about you Stephen who’s your favorite i I would put Rockets one if Clippers was likely i’d put that i’d put that too um give me give me Kell second i’m really high on Kel Wear i and I and I get that there are some some doubts there but I just think he can play alongside all the key pieces for this team going forward so give me Heat second Timberwolves third h Raptors then Spurs and then Clippers obviously lost because that’s not going to happen one for ones i’m about at the same spot that y’all are that y’all are at i think the I feel like there’s gonna be something with Toronto where they become a little bit more relevant as the draft deadline gets closer and closer just because of what they have what they’re willing to cut ties with and what they could pivot to in terms of their salary cap absorbing Durant and being able to go and add other pieces off the attraction of it so stay tuned on that part it’s interesting to see the reaction to the Rockets trade because a lot of people are saying that’s way too much and some people are saying that’s way too little that’s how you know you cooked Gerald i guess for the people wondering why Jock Landell is in there and not Tar East or Cam Whitmore the math works in that deal the math does not work if you replace with Cam Whitmore um so Jock we love Jock here on this program but he’s mostly salary filler he’s not necessarily to address your needs at center and I will also say when it comes to Kell Wear I’m I’m such a sucker for young players any young player that’s shown promise I’m like “Oh yeah they’re going to be great.” Doesn’t always doesn’t always work out like that’s just me like I’m a sucker for guys like that so I’m willing to look I’m willing to look a little bit more past that we did like We think all of us during the pre-draft process last year too i mean if he fell to the 20s I would have ran to the podium to myself and drafted him in New York uh okay we’ve got some three team deals and you mentioned Toronto a hint for our mystery guest they uh they are very familiar with the Toronto Raptors but also they cover the NBA as well so these are hints we’re going to be talking Kevin Rant with them uh Mario that is a crazy chat that you’re dropping i can’t believe I actually just acknowledged it either uh we’re going to get to three team deals and we’re going to do it after this break we talk about 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PHNX that’s right a $350 off discount visit empire.com/px for details restrictions do apply also big shout out to APS for helping us stay cool during the summer but did you know that nearly half of your energy costs come from cooling and heating with summer here it’s time to get smart about saving and that’s why you need a smart thermostat to help manage your energy bills smart thermostats work with your APS rate plan to maximize comfort and convenience while minimizing your energy cost if you’re on an APS time of use plan use your smartphone or device to automatically adjust the thermostat to take advantage of lowerc cost off- peak hours plus APS customers may be eligible for smart thermostats for as low as $0 when you enroll in the APS Cool Rewards program if you’re not sure how to install your smart thermostat don’t worry free install also available at APS Marketplace if you already have a smart thermostat at home see if you’re eligible to reward to enroll in cool rewards and find instant rebates discounts and special offers on smart thermostats energy efficient appliances and more at marketplace.aps.com you must be an APS customer and pay shipping and taxes other restrictions apply go to marketplace.aps.com aps.com for more information uh very funny comments in the chat uh very funny guessing as well uh about who the mystery guest is i will say this nobody in this chat but somebody on social media guessed it right they did so we’ll get to that in a couple of minutes first we have some three team deals to knock out gerald let’s uh let’s start with this one here yeah let’s start with the one you cooked up today yeah uh this isn’t the Phoenix Suns get under the second apron uh this is um this is something is it not this is something uh you know it’s like uh I was looking at the trade machine and scratching my neck while you’re when you’re back Gerald i’m like “Oh I want to still do something stupid with the trade machine.” Okay three team trade suns get Nicole Vousvich Kell Wear Andrew Wiggins Terry Rosier Zack Collins and the 12th pick in this year’s draft the Heat received Kevin Durant and Jaylen Smith the Bulls received Bradley Beal the 20th and 29th pick in this year’s draft plus a 2030 and 2031 first round pick from Miami so Miami is getting Kevin Durant and Jaylen Smith they’re giving up Kell Wear Andrew Wiggins Terry Roier and two first round picks three first round picks actually including the 20th pick in this year’s draft the Suns are giving up KD and the 29th pick to and Bradley Beal to get Vuvich Wear Wiggins Rosier Collins and 12 the Bulls are giving up Vousvich Collins and 12 to get Beal the 20th the 29th pick and then two future first round picks uh I don’t know if the Bulls do this i don’t know if the Heat do this but by God I would so I think you might have to swap the Miami number 20 pick with the Bulls number 12 pick like I think the Bulls would still keep their pick and then I think maybe 20 goes to the Suns instead of 12 that makes sense but I’m not mad at the framework the the question is what are the Bulls trying to do which has been the question for 10 years i ain’t got nothing hey that Billy Donovan extension is coming for you that question has not been cleared up but we have no idea what direction they’re going in if they are in that asset accumulation mode of yeah give us your terrible contract but just throw in some extra picks a couple future picks then this makes sense but if they’re not if they’re trying to win because they are buying into I don’t want to call it fool’s gold because that feels unfair but after the All-Star break the run that they went on if they’re buying into that and saying “Oh we can we can be competitive in the East next year,” then maybe not so much well Phoenix turns into a center stop fine with me you say you like centers we got three last season how about we double down we did do that with a point guard when the Suns didn’t have a point guard and then they had 17 of them i don’t care it’s true bradley Beal’s off the team kel Wear’s on the team draft picks like I I Vusovich is gone after next year anyway we are also overstating or maybe underestimating the Bulls tendency to trade things and not get proper value in return alex Caruso yeah i mean and and here’s here’s the thing man uh Carne Sovis I I just got to tell you if you’re looking for somebody who once scored 30 points per game in back-to-back seasons a former all-star in the East somebody who gave your team hell on a consistent basis might I interest you in saving Bradley Beal and swooping in and just getting some incredible value for a former all-star one of the former best guards in the East i mean come on man what’s not to like about pairing him up with Kobe White he could mentor him you know teach him how to cheer for the other team when he gets dotted from three you know these are the type of lessons that Bradley Beal can pass along to the the younger generation of NBA stars and St louis native that’s like basically Chicago it’s like the same thing that’s both of you to assume that Kobe White is still going to be there for That’s fair i mean it’s also This also hinges on the fact that Bradley Beal says he’s okay with going to Chicago which um also Yeah probably not all right let’s move on from that terrible trade and let’s get to a general trade yeah let’s do a new one uh the Suns are in a three-team deal with the Heat and Nets so the Suns are getting Cam Johnson from Brooklyn they’re getting Duncan Robinson’s expiring and Khil Wear from the Heat along with uh a 2029 firstrounder from Miami they’re also getting number 27 from Brooklyn which is not that big a deal to give up because that is the worst of Brooklyn’s four first round picks in this year’s draft so it’s expendable for them i think they have another pick right at 26 as well heat get Kevin Durant the Nets take on Terry Rosier’s expiring contract and for their troubles they’re given the number 20 pick from Miami as well as a 2031 first round pick so the Nets give up Cam Johnson but they take on a bad contract and get two first rounders for their trouble they move up from 27 to number 20 the Suns give up KD get Cam Johnson Khil Wear and two firsts along with an expiring and the Heat get their guy in KD thoughts defense be damned rob Robinson Johnson and where as a 345 out around Devin Booker operating in the mini sign me up to give up 150 points per game um Stephen’s on board with that part but well I mean Devin Booker led the league in three-point assists last season he is about to double down on that going into next season and double down because he’s going to be getting attacked on defense his hands going to be on his knees like that’s the Jimmy Butler mean yeah that’s that’s uh that’s that’s definitely something too on that part um dude so I love when I get when I say something and Stephen is just like “Dude I don’t even know how to respond something that happened.” It’s certainly words that came out of your mouth Eric for sure uh yeah I like the I like the framework of it though i think you’re getting to something again especially if Durant is choosing to go to Miami mhm um you could do a lot worse than not um having bringing in Terry Rosir into your into your um your your salary cap and also getting a 27 to go with 29 I think is relevant in addition to the 2029 first round pick that you get too so futures wise I like it a lot but pertaining to next season yeah it’s tough well I like this deal but I like another deal better and a couple of you have mentioned him in the chat so let’s bring up a slight variation let’s throw Nick Claxton into the Suns instead of Cam Johnson there uh we’re going to replace Khilar with Haime Hakees and the Suns are going to get pick number 20 they’re going to get a 2031 first from Miami the Heat are going to get Kevin Durant the Nets are still going to be taking on Terry Rosier instead of getting two first round picks back they’re getting a 2029 firstrounder from Miami my initial concern is that’s not enough considering they’re giving up Claxton and taking on Rosier uh but outside of that I really kind of like this deal i think Nick Laxton you’ve spoken about him Stephen Eric all of us he is a switchable big who his numbers are down he is the exact type of player who might be available for less than he would have been a few years ago when he was an alldefensive caliber player switchable big the exact type of guy that you would love to plug into Jordan’s system after a just spent this past year working with Evan Mobley and Jared Allen yeah that’s exactly what it is um with with Claxton in particular I think a change of scenery will be a breath of fresh air for him that he would certainly relish um I also think that with the Suns in this trade getting Himeme Hz as well that’s another piece that you’re betting on his rookie showing a whole lot more than uh his sophomore year which was I feel like it was injury laden more than anything else that was really kind of why he hit the speed bump that he did with also a lot of moving parts with Jimmy Brother been in and out and ultimately gone there’s a lot of differences for him last season i think he would be a piece that you could build around going forward uh with Devin Booker in mind as well as uh Nick Claxton yeah I like this deal i I still think that with with Nick Claxton there is a worry about like is did he hit like his peak when he was younger i’m not too worried about that i don’t think there’s as high of an upside as there is with Kaware especially off excuse me offensively i think I take the first package over this one i still like this one also just for those on audio to clarify this deal still has Duncan Robinson coming to the Suns in this deal we have I believe one more trade gerald one more three team trade we’re gonna get to that and then we have a special guest i have one gripe with the chat today y’all have been awesome there’s so many of you in here just hit the like button yeah it’s free literally one two three in that time you could have hit the like button you could hit the subscribe button let’s uh let’s get one last trade Gerald yeah let’s do it let’s get crazy this one’s not going to happen but it’s fun uh Suns are getting Lorie Markin from Utah they’re getting Khalil Wear from Miami the Heat are getting Kevin Durant the Jazz are taking on Terry Rosier’s contract reuniting Danny A with Scary Terry in Salt Lake City as well as Duncan Robinson’s expiring they’re getting Haime Hawz and they’re getting four first they’re getting uh number 20 from Miami they’re getting number 29 from Phoenix in this year’s draft they’re getting a 2030 first round swap from Phoenix and they’re getting a 2031 first round pick from Miami i don’t know if Utah is even in the mode where they’re you know ready to ship out Markin i think Ames is probably ready to start being more competitive which automatically kills this deal mhm but if you’re talking about fortifying the front court it’s fun to imagine getting Markin and I don’t know if Utah says no i think they do i I mean Stephen you and I talked about it feels like Lowry’s time there it might be coming to a close and if there’s anything Danny in has a heart on for it’s picks he wants pickp kick to you Stephen yes please um this guy here um I I feel like I read maybe a week or two ago that the the Jazz were at least entertaining calls on Kesler as well as marketing yeah so I imagine in any deal for them to even listen past obviously the the players that teams are going to be calling about what are you bringing to us and if you’re talking about four picks that’s a com that’s something that you put the you put the quarter into the the telephone and it gives you an extra 30 seconds to talk that’s what that gets you right there in that conversation you add on top of that a younger piece like Himez that’s something that’s enough for Utah to look the other way on Terry Rosier and Duncan Robinson being involved with that i I do think though Mark and it like the Desmond Bane going for four first kind of hurts you a little bit there for sure so I don’t know that those four first are not that valuable for Mark and I just I don’t think Markin is as valuable as a player right now as Desmond Bane after the year that I was the thing and you’re getting and you’re getting Himemeay who had a down year but if you’re high on Jame Himeme maybe you could say well we’re talking ourselves into that’s a young guy we’re taking a shot on yeah he he’s not he’s he’s down in value but like you’re taking on two bad expiring contracts and the best player you’re getting back is Haime Hawk is I don’t know i think a more valuable pick it’s the picks I think that might make that go through i don’t know if that’s super realistic but I’m I’m intrigued if you’re also intrigued in who our special guest is and you’re on TV I got to remind you the party always continues over at gophnx.com which means it’s time for overtime baby and that means it is time to wrap up our trade machine Tuesday conversation let us know down in the comments below what was your favorite trade that Gerald cooked up today if you have not already read his article at gophnx.com his triumphant return to writing after his paternity leave go ahead and check that out become a diehard today if you also have not donated to Big Brothers Big Sisters which is the reason why we’re having a mystery guest today is we’re having a spirit week to help them make sure you hit that donate button below help All City raise $10,000 just this week for a fantastic cause and if you want to get more involved go to bbbs.orgallcity i am extremely excited for this mystery guest uh Espo went ahead and booked this guest for us now I don’t know how familiar other people will be with this person i mean he hosts a very very big NBA show he’s somebody whose show I have been following since I was a wee lad and is extremely good at what he does he has an incredible pulse on what’s going on in the NBA and you can catch his show with the Athletic it’s called No Dunks Monday through Friday without any further ado let’s talk to JK SK about the Kevin Durant trademark spirit week continues here at the All City Network it is time for mystery guest Tuesday and we have an amazing mystery guest joining Eric Steven and Gerald on PHNX Suns it’s J Skez of No Dunks fame one of the OG if not the OG NBA basketball podcasters formerly the starters on the NBA network and TNT and so much more uh Skates how you doing man nba Finals in full swing i’m fantastic uh happy to be on happy to be the mystery guest i like the sound of that it’s like I’m uh running into the Royal Rumble nobody knows I’m coming in what’s What’s your theme music if you’re running in uh great question probably Break the Ice by John Farnum from the 1984 BMX movie Rad yeah you know just just a casual uh mainstream option there just a great song i mean it’s a great song i would love to run in the ring to it uh that’s definitely one that you know he’s he’s sat up and and thought about before uh your your overarching thoughts on what’s been going on with the Kevin Durant trade saga from a a more holistic national perspective than maybe us in the weeds here in Phoenix yeah I guess uh you guys are probably getting a little tired of talking about hypothetical Kevin Durant trades yeah just a little bit uh hopefully we uh have a conclusion to this soon um it’s been weird just cuz we know it was always it is going to happen like right after the season ended it was basically a done deal like okay yeah they are looking to trade this guy he’s still talented despite his age and then who wants them and who wants to then hopefully sign him to the extension so we’ve had like what these big lists that have sort of dwindled down a little bit but now it seems to be like are the Wolves still in it are they not so I know it feels like one of the Texas teams or Miami but man there’s still a lot of buzz out there about the Wolves being aggressive so I don’t know what to think and you just keep getting reports from these people that are pretty plugged in um and we just sort of wait and see and all we can do then is be like “What package could Houston put together what package could San Antonio put together would the Heat include so and so?” And and we go from there but it’s I mean it is fun it’s good for business people they love trades they absolutely do and to that point skates I got a two-parter for you so number one what’s the best trade destination for Kevin Durant and number two what’s the best trade destination for the Suns oo okay i that’s a good question um again if we’re going with sort of this short list if we believe this is the list and and again a part of that him having the tiniest bit of leverage over like hey look you you trade me there and then I’ll sign that extension with so- and so maybe not other teams again Phoenix doesn’t have to like say we’ll play play kind like that but I can’t imagine a team wanting a a disgruntled Kevin Durant even if it was for one year so let’s go with that um I like of all like the sort of prospect players that are like realistic I I’m a big Jabari Smith Jr fan so I do if he is included in some sort of Houston deal even if that does mean Jaylen Green’s the key piece I think you can work with that and maybe spin him out but I like him as a player like as a as a piece quilling forward for the Suns uh the flip side of that KD it’s a good spot but man I would love to play with Wyama and Darren Fox if I’m Kevin Durant at the end of my career uh I like how that sounds so I guess I pick those two um two Texas teams from you know just different sides of the coin sk I have a quick one for you and this might well I take the quick part back um because it’s going to be a little thinking little thought exercise going on so looking at the teams that I guess are his favorites to go to and looking at the returns that one of those three or each of those three teams could potentially net what young piece would you maybe like to see most with the Suns and system with Devin Booker so we got Vel Johnson Jabari Smith Jr Tyrese Een Kel Wear pretty much those kind of names who would you like to see most with the Suns going into the next season i am higher like I said on Jabari Smith Jr than probably some of the Spurs guys as good as they are and as talented as they might be I just love his upside khalil Wear I mean yeah we can get into the Heat one i I it does feel you know Jake Fischer I’m sure you guys have talked about this a ton reporting like that’s sort of the the hangup I guess maybe from the Miami Heat side of things like they don’t want to include Khalil Wear they maybe don’t want to include Hakez Jr as like that’s the swing piece you could get it done uh obviously with like Wiggins contract and then a Rosie or Duncan Robinson um Khalil Wear to answer your question if that that one’s realistic that one that’s awesome to me his age his potential at the center position it feels like that’s a hole that the Suns could obviously fill um that’s a no-brainer i love Hawkeyes Jr i know he’s older so I know that like you know knocks him down a couple pegs to some people but I still think he’d be great in Arizona alongside Booker um but I would go I guess where even though I think it’s unlikely that the Heat would include him or even should and the most realistic one is Jabari Smith Jr to me that’s how I sort of would you know put them in ranking quick followup for you uh Jeremy Sohan wasn’t included in the names that I mentioned how does he kind of stake claim in that in that hierarchy for you yeah I am not as high on Jeremy Sohan as some people are i I mean like he’s going to have a long career there’s always a position for him no doubt i I actually had a chance to see him um I got a chance to go to Paris for those two games between the Spurs and um and and the Pacers and so I got to see him up close and and I like like it’s I you know he’s just not a skilled offensive player just to be blunt about it and again obviously can rebound and defensive minded but uh I’m just not as high on him i I just I really not like again he’ll be in the league he’s going to have a spot but these other guys that we’re talking about to me have the ability to to blossom to turn into you know an all-star or a borderline all-star i don’t think that’s in Sohan’s future but that’s my reading on it i don’t know man he was hitting open threes in a gym during the summer we all know that means he’s going to be good well Ben Simmons has never missed uh in the summer oh no the Sohan Ben Simmons comparisons now I’m No no no no i’m not going that far i’m not going that far uh let’s uh let’s put on the the old GM hat Skezy and uh let’s say you are in charge of a team who is maybe interested in in acquiring Kevin Durant where do you put uh his value entering his age 37 season for the 15 time All-Star uh that’s a good question look he’s not I think every time Durant’s been moved prior he was pretty obviously still a top five guy right i mean or at least right there on on that sort of uh window he’s nowhere near that nowadays like with his age i mean it’s just a big part of it but is he still top 20 is he still top 25 like is he more in that ballpark probably 15 to 25 somewhere he just has such an elite skill and I don’t see why it would suddenly disappear as long as he’s out there and healthy and we’re we’re talking you know the jumper off the off the bounce i mean it’s just like he’s automatic from mid-range so I just want I’m always worried with Kevin Durant a little bit about his attitude or his vibe and the impact he can have positively or negatively on a locker room so I want him going to a spot into a setting where that’s like either there’s like an alpha dog and he slots in behind him or he’s the alpha i guess if he was in Miami that’s probably the case but then just a great system in place to just let the guy hoop uh and you know try and avoid all the other uh offthe- court noise and stuff like that so I’m still high on him i mean despite his age in the right situation he definitely has proven he can still be a pretty fantastic like second banana and can close games and win you games if you get into a playoff setting you just got to get there right and into those matchups he’s not going to fall off a cliff he’s suddenly not going to be be able to shoot like no one thinks that so it’s just you’re really getting into the health factor and I think having sort of a good uh system in place in your organization in your locker room for him just to plug in and hoop but I’m still high on him yeah having that infrastructure and that culture in place makes a lot of sense to me as far as Kevin Durant still being able to contend um let’s keep the GM hat on for a second we know the Suns are not going to get the same value for Kevin Durant that they gave up to get him but if you were the GM of the Suns how are you approaching what you’re targeting in a Kevin Durant trade cuz we we’ve heard Phoenix is targeting you know players that can help them compete now obviously you need salary filler guys of that caliber um but draft picks young players maybe not as much of a priority if if you were this GM of the Suns how are you trying to build around Devin Booker with this pivotal deal knowing that you still have Bradley Beal to kind of figure out or deal with for the next one to two years right oh Bradley still here what are you doing here Bradley oh you don’t want to leave you sure no okay you’re here that’s fine um it’s Yeah it’s that’s why when on our on our No Dunks podcast I guess it was late last week when we were like getting buzz of some of these teams and we went through all the hypothetical deals we sort of came to the conclusion again to go back to Minnesota of like all the players that we have just talked about the the four of us here it’s like the best player right now if that is the game plan let’s compete with Booker and let’s retool on the fly it would be Julius Randall like again if that’s any potential that there’s like a three or four team trade to get him to Phoenix so it’s him in my opinion if you’re like looking to at least you know compete and and get these wins because some of these other guys like you know you’re hoping to some extent there’s either too much overlap with Booker when we’re going a little bit green and Vels and stuff like that or they’re just young and it’s like man we’re we’re hoping Jabari Smith Jr turns into an all-star or we’re hoping you know one of the maybe Heat guys sort of levels up but right now it’s Randall to me as for the picks I mean I’m the GM i got the hat on i’m like I want all three like I want good players i want promising young guys and I want draft capital and I think I mean again you guys have talked about this like non-stop but like that’s why the Rockets having Phoenix’s draft capital there is something where it’s like let’s at least get that back i mean at least we have the control then all these other ones that we talk about in the 20s 30s and the 32s and they’re coming by swaps and it’s like you got to have a lot of things go your way you know for those picks to like obviously pay off or even to fall high you got your own you at least know where they’re going to lay um so that is another maybe bonus for the Rockets again you guys have talked about this there’s nothing you don’t know but there is that idea if we are leaning towards draft capital let’s get our own uh to get that control what would be maybe the most intriguing or interesting thing you would be looking forward to with the Booker Suns roster going into next season um well first off I am a huge Deon Booker fan i’m on record i’ve been a Booker guy since day one so obviously there’s been ups and downs uh you know a lot of losing early and then a lot of uh success there going all the way to the finals and then him finally getting his flowers I felt like and people are like wising up like oh he actually is a good player he was just on a bad team he wasn’t just empty stats little bit of a down here here this last year which was a little unfortunate but I just need guys around him that can play a little defense can obviously just plug in the holes like I feel so good with him obviously scoring the ball he’s improved as a playmaker and then end of a game I love going through him still like you’re going to operate through him but I need we got to get some stops and we have to just at least have a bit of an effort on the defensive end and that’s why we go to that Khalil Wear talk like that idea I think of like a promising young defensive mind center little rim runner you know you see like the lively type comparisons that makes sense but yeah they just they they do need it’s been weird like they went all in they went all in on like these guys that can score right with KD and the Beal factor and Booker and it’s like a little too much of that i think we’re seeing you know even use the Thunder in the finals as an example it’s like you don’t need every guy to be able to go get 25 they’re all NBA players they can all get you that on any given night but the consistent guys we need two we need three of those guys like when you look at the Thunder example then we need your dogs we need those guys and and you know if you’re Phoenix you’re hoping that you have a couple on the come up or you can get some more in the in this hypothetical KD trade so that’s what I’m looking at we’re wrapping things up here with JK SK of the No Dunks podcast daily NBA show over on the Athletic there’s a lot of doom and gloom here locally in in Phoenix about the next couple of years in the future of this franchise even beyond a Kevin Durant trade where do you stand on how quickly Phoenix might be able to dig themselves out of this hole they got themselves into and get back into at least relevancy in the Western Conference if not contention i don’t think we’re looking at like a five or six here like plan here at all i mean like again you the Suns were a laughingstock of the league for years and couldn’t win at all and then they turned into obviously a competent franchise and they had a superstar in Booker and they made some big splashy plays maybe you know overplayed their hand i guess we could look back and say now maybe they wouldn’t have done some of these moves whatever but I don’t think they’re they’re super super far off i I you heard now you can pivot and you can blow it all up and like Booker’s on the trade deadline that guy wants to be there though so that’s refreshing but I was like thinking like I grew up a Raptors fan i mean they were garbage forever right and then you know then the infrastructure and the guys got in place and it was led by Lowry and it was D Rozan they couldn’t get over the LeBron hump kept banging their head into that wall but then they made the big move that paid off and that was Kawawaii and since then it’s sort of now they’ve started to slow down and holding on with some draft picks but like it takes like one or two guys alongside a guy you already have in Booker to sort of like click and I don’t think it’s farfetched i don’t know about this coming season but like two years from now would I be shocked if they’re back in the very loaded you know competitive West not at all not at all um because so quickly this league changes i mean just in terms of trades in terms of like oh you had the 12th pick and that guy suddenly turns into an all-star in his third year all NBA guy like Jaylen Williams like we don’t know like the draft is such a crapshoot as it is so I don’t I I’m not like I know Suns fans right now oh boy oh boy here we go this is going to be brutal it could be It could be bad for a year and I’m not even that convinced it’s going to be brutal brutal so I still think this is going to be a competitive team and I I mean really it’s like wait to see what they get back for KD maybe I’ll have maybe I’ll change my tune when we see what actually comes back but I have some faith that there’s enough teams sort of interested that like they can slow play this a tiny bit to like maybe get another young player or another draft pick and seems like that’s what they’re doing here why they’re not rushing to be like “Okay we’ll just we’ll take that one.” Okay really quick since you are a Raptors fan there has been some links between the Raptors and and Kevin Durant does that make any sense to you at all it really doesn’t it doesn’t uh and like I like KD like as fun as it would be I guess to see him in a Raptors jersey you know still scoring 25 cool but like that we you know we talked about that infrastructure and maybe like KD has to go in theory to a team that’s like like that’s why the heat is weird that’s why the Rockets makes more sense like they were the second seed in the West and we saw their limitations it’s It seems to be like I know I’m like getting way ahead but like remember we were looking at the Thunder and they slow played it and they got to the to the playoffs and then we saw what happened like Giddy couldn’t be out there they could have used a little more defense they you could have used a big and that’s what Prey went and got he went and got Hartstein he went and got Caruso and bang they’re one win away from winning the whole thing like those guys have obviously helped now could the Rockets be looking at their team we got a lot of young guys we got to take our lumps in the playoffs but we’re missing said piece that would be Kevin Durant we need a scorer um I think there’s some correlation i don’t think the Rockets are going to win the title if they make a trade for KD right away but he needs to go to a team that they’re close or at least like on that trajectory my Raptors are not they’re just not raptors fans are delusional uh I I said all last year we were going to be bad and we were but you know you know we got Ingram and we got R.J and we got quickly and we got a weird team but we got to see how they like play together with Scotty Barnes as the main guy but I don’t think Katie is going to Toronto i think that’s all smoke i say real quick was it Eugi that put that put that out for the media or was that Drake good point uh I’ll go Drake i’ll go Drake he’s trying to build a system back up makes sense it’s a good call uh SKS man thank you so much for taking some time out of your busy schedule to join us here for those who aren’t familiar with what uh you Tass Trey JD and the whole crew do on a daily basis over at NOD you want to let them know where they can find you and what y’all are all about yeah we do a daily show Monday through Friday sometimes weekends especially during the playoffs we do emergency podcasts of course too we will do one when KD is inevitably traded um but 10:00 a.m every morning 10 a.m eastern uh really early for you guys out there uh on YouTube we go live um and yeah just talk about obviously the big games and the big stories and have a lot of fun and uh yeah come check us out no Dunks on Apple it’s on Spotify it’s everywhere if you don’t know by now I mean you’re you’re not going to care so thank you so much Skates we appreciate you have a good one take care guys good luck man uh I will say this some people might be like “Yeah I don’t I don’t know who that is.” Mhm learn because uh that dude and and so No Dunks is like my OG like that’s the show I’ve listened to watched every day he’s had very a lot of iterations was on NBA TV a couple of years ago before that they were the basketball Jones which like the first basketball podcast like ever and there’s more members of the program like they’re super fun a lot of like what we do they like we have mirrored how they attack things on the NBA side great companion shows to get a national perspective on the Suns the finals everything going on highly recommend checking out No Dunks uh I would say let’s get our biggest takeaways here but we got to get out of here because PHX Cardinals is coming up next but of course we’ll have a lot more Kevin Rant talk to get to tomorrow we’ll continue our coverage of KD we’ll also be bringing you our official big board the draft prospects that we need the Suns to get we’ll be bringing that to you tomorrow and then later this week we’ll hit free agents and whenever a Kevin Rant trade goes down remember that we will be doing a breaking news podcast right here on PHX Sports so hit that subscribe button hit that like button go to gophnx.com and read Gerald’s article if you’re a diehard if you’re not a diehard become a diehard at gophnx.com/join you can follow the show until then at phnx_sons we’ll bring you uptodate updates on KD as well that’s on Instagram and on Twitter you can follow Stephen don’t call him Steve or don’t kick it to him after saying Danny A has a hard on for picks and Steven PG3 correct ste with a PH that’s why the PH is for balance you haven’t said it in a while i feel like you need to bring it back the PH is for balance not Steve you could follow Goku’s dad Gerald Gerald Borg you could follow me breaking up the balance as always at Erik ruby expect to see all of you back here at 300 p.m tomorrow and looking forward to talking to you then
A Kevin Durant trade feels inevitable for the Phoenix Suns, as the NBA media world can’t stop talking about it.
Today’s Trade Machine Tuesday is centered around who else but Kevin Durant, as it seems the finish line is near on a deal surfacing.
Erik Ruby, Gerald Bourguet, and Stephen PridGeon-Garner are here to dive into details on the “Realistic” trade offers that Gerald put together in his latest written piece.
The guys will be ranking the realistic trade packages from each of the deemed interested teams, taking a look at some three-team deals that could surface, and also be joined by a fun “Mystery Guest” as Spirit Week continues with PHNX.
Who has the best trade package to offer? Who’s likely set up best AFTER attaining Durant? Who is it in the best interest for the Suns to do business with?
PHNX Suns dives into the details of it all on today’s episode.
0:00 – Intro
4:15 – Kevin Durant Rumors Continue to Swirl
6:00 – Trade Machine Tuesday
1:00:00 – A Mystery Guest Joins The PHNX Suns Crew
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Another day, another repetitive video about Kevin Durant getting traded
5:50 KD has never said he wants to leave