Kevin Durant traded to Rockets, How much pressure is on them to win a title? | FIRST THINGS FIRST

Kevin Durant traded to Rockets, How much pressure is on them to win a title? | FIRST THINGS FIRST

houston we have Kevin Durant trademark uh KD moving from the Suns to the Rockets for Jaylen Green Dylan Brooks the 10th overall pick and five second round picks which I found strange uh if this sounds familiar it’s because you saw this graphic on this very show seven days ago good call thank you Nick your reaction to this move that you predicted well listen i I understand and I don’t want to be rude to the NBA front offices that have been blowing up my phone i love these guys i love this job too much i’m I’m flattered and obviously I could do the job but I I like my life here sam Prey he tried to get Winhorse did you see that Of course yeah exactly i No listen there’s It’s happened before it’s happened plenty of times and Jenkins I’m here to tell you guys I’m here for you guys oh thanks um more importantly though I think I’ll pick them to win the West really I Wow i think they have a great blend of what we’ve seen works right now in the NBA which is you talked about the defense bang high level coaching no doubt about it depth and a guy who can get you a guaranteed 25 plus which Kevin Durant still is like there is no there’s no question about it and the fact that they were able to get him and give up in my opinion very little wow the I think like look at their nineman next year so I this is my projected top line as their starting five fred Van Vleet Aean Thompson who might take a huge leap yep durant Jabari Smith Jr the top three pick shin Goon and then I think really good depth tar East would start on a bunch of teams reed Shepard’s the X factor but he was a top five pick last year udoka just wouldn’t play him because he couldn’t defend but I would But so now all of a sudden if we assume Stephen Adams shave his head did I mess in a ponytail But I like they went from a team that didn’t have any shot making really aside from Van Bleed at times to KD who’s one of the greatest shot makers ever and I’m gonna include and 20 minutes a game from Reed Shepard who was drafted because of shotmaking like well but right is he like you said we’ll see if he can take the jump but defensively if he can’t defend it might I get that but I don’t I nobody saw him go in the top five like what are they doing I like him i like him a lot too so I just I think that all of a sudden that is a complete deep well-rounded team that makes a lot of sense and so I think it’s and again they made it to seven against Golden State Brew with the guy who Durant replacing giving you 13 points per game on 372967 splits and he had one good game yeah right he had the one he had 37 or whatever in the one game four right And so I I I love it i like it for both teams um I a lot of people I don’t know if you’re saying this Nick don’t think Phoenix got back a decent I knew they weren’t going to get you know No I think it was a perfect trade i suggested No I Yeah I think look Jaylen Green I get it he is very raw but he led a 50- win team in scoring shun didn’t lead this team in scoring he led him in scoring and he is not yet a very good shooter like I think he’s going to improve i think a lot of these guys are going to improve their three-point shooting because you you really have to in today’s game so he shot 35 he’s the one shot 35% this year i think he’ll improve that dylan Brooks look I like his attitude i I think some teams need that i think that’s a loss for Houston losing that kind of you know that whether he’s a tough guy or not he acts like a tough guy and in the NBA he’s one of the tough guys or whatever so I I think that’s good and then obviously they get the 10th pick and the other stuff like you said that’ll facilitate future trades i do think Houston improved but I still would go with OKC over them because I think and we saw it in B when KD was in Brooklyn against Boston with Udoka coaching for the Celtics we saw it two years ago when KD and the Suns played Denver and Aaron Gordon got physical with him i think physical defense bothers Durant and now he’s gonna get his 27 plus or 25 or whatever but it won’t be as efficient and he’ll have a some turn a lot of turnovers with it so I that’s why I think OKC will be all up in him and I think that’ll bother him a little bit but I I do think they’re legit contenders and they have a great shot and what I like and we kind of went back and forth on this they actually do cuz I’ve been I was saying I would save my assets for Giannis they actually still have enough assets if they want to get Giannis whenever he becomes available milwaukee is not even answering the phone on Giannis trades right now but when he becomes available which you will because I don’t see Milwaukee being very good they have you’d have to give up Shingun but Shingun plays like a a much lesser version of Giannis he doesn’t shoot outside he’s inside i also don’t know that you’d have to give up Shingun well I don’t feel like I need I but if I’m Milwaukee that’s the only way you’re getting him is if you give up Shingun because I want a young star but I just don’t know that they’d even need both because that neither of them can shoot right And so do I want to play them and they’re both kind of playmakers Jiannis and Shingun so I just think it’s a perfect you know replacement for Shingun i have two things one knock on KD oh he’s not a leader i think this is a great test of his leadership a bunch of young guys who can all develop in different ways and if all these guys got a little better if Shingun got a little bit better if Aman Thompson got a little bit better uh if Tori E got a little bit better developed a little different game I think this would be a nice sort of notch on his leadership i don’t think he’s going to do the be a great do a great job of leading him i just don’t think that’s who he is but I think Van Vleet has some leadership i wanted I mean yeah he got I think Van Vleet got as far as you can go the second one is very important you cannot have the Rockets just try to throw it away like Well I think I’m going to take what We can pick them no you can’t you can’t pick the Rockies the one No you you can’t pick here’s the teams you can’t pick the Patriots the Red Sox and the Rockets those are my teams hold on the Rockets but the Rockets are obviously I cannot be watching Listen League pass on a Tuesday watching Trey E go for 12 points and you guys just parachut everyone knows he’s just saying he’s just saying he’s the Rockets guy here’s everyone knows everybody knows that here’s the problem i have seen the future and the future is you’re going to go into next year and be like you know who’s going to win the championship The team that won the last one uh how much pressure is Kate I I don’t get people are dictating it but he has a say in it i think he was saying that sometimes you’re in a position where other people can dictate it he was happy that in this situation he was able to dictate it sorry i think that’s what How much pressure is on KD to win I think I’m going to surprise you guys none none this is a low-key disc no it’s not pressure is a is about expectations and I think KD has lowered the expectations for like I’m I’m You heard the expression once bitten twice shy i’m twice bitten once shy with KD okay i when he went to Brooklyn Yeah i declared they were going to win a championship and I know that all wasn’t his fault for sure but when they went to Phoenix I don’t I wasn’t I don’t know if I was on the show but on I said after that trade was made on the Odd Couple radio show they’re gonna win a championship and now look at them when he went to Phoenix yes they had Devin Booker they had just DeAndre definitively on the show when he was on the Nets i don’t remember say Oh you’re right i don’t remember saying two years i don’t know if I picked them like when we picked before the season but we but I thought they were going to win the championship and they didn’t and so now I I have to see it to believe it this is a very good team he’s gone to but KD also has t I don’t think he’s obsessed with winning i think he wants to win no doubt about that but I don’t think he’s obsessed with it and so I just feel like if KD goes there and they go out in the second round is anybody killing KD No but I I think he’s got a lot to gain i think he got a ton to gain he’s in a no- lose situation i don’t think the only way he can lose in this situation is if they go backwards either lose in the first round again don’t even go seven or something like that but otherwise he is in a no lose situation he’ll gain a ton he’ll erase those mental asterics that some people have by his Warriors championships but I don’t think I don’t think there’s pressure so I think there is I think there is pressure to like you said not go not have the team be look be worse if they go backwards i mean my goodness but here is and it seems like I’m right now higher on Durant than you maybe a bit but the truth is since he’s left Golden State while his individual play has been excellent it’s just 2020 throw it out 2021 he was unbelievable in that Bucks series he had 30 averaged like 35 10 and five that was the tow on the line game series but other than that they haven’t been close at all ever none of those teams were close that’s what I mean by lower so the if we just show dus if we could quickly KD before the Warriors cuz the thing about yes they never won a championship but he just lived in the conference finals you know at least like four of the six years he’s at least in the conference finals or NBA finals I expect the Rockets to be one of the final four teams remaining and then we’ll you know what I mean then we’ll see from there but so I do think like Bruce said it’s less about what he can lose and more about what he can gain and I think and I think it’s on the board he does it i think he’s still a definitive top 10 if they win the championship he enters toward that top thanks for watching subscribe here to get more from the show and to check out clips 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Kevin Durant was traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Houston Rockets for a handful of 2nd round picks, Jalen Green, and Dillon Brooks. Nick Wright, Chris Broussard, and Kevin Wildes discuss the expectations on the Rockets and KD to win a championship.

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About First Things First:
Nick Wright, Chris Broussard, and Kevin Wildes team up on First Things First. The trio offers their take on a bevy of sports stories alongside special guests from across the sports world.

Kevin Durant traded to Rockets, How much pressure is on them to win a title? | FIRST THINGS FIRST
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