Daily News | Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving could throw a new wrinkle into the Sixers’ offseason plans
Just thinking out loud here, but if it’s true that Kevin Durant has no leverage in picking his next team, why are the Nets trading him in the first place? Before I tell you why this matters to the Sixers, let’s answer the question. The idea that Durant’s contract will limit his veto power over potential trades is one that has been raised on a number of occasions since the news broke that he wants out of Brooklyn.
The thinking goes something like this: Durant will earn $196 million as long as he plays basketball for the next four years, which leaves him little choice but to play basketball, regardless of which basketball team acquires his contract. It’s so quaint a notion that it’s almost adorable. Thing is, here in the real world, guys like Durant get to choose where they play. It’s one of the perks of being a top-10 player of all time. The more it costs a team to acquire you, the more control you have over which team acquires you. Take the Celtics, for example. Even if Durant wants to play in Boston, there’d be plenty of risk in trading two young starters off an NBA Finals team for a 33-year-old veteran two years removed from an Achilles tear.
One example pertinent to the Sixers: the Rockets. Houston has long made sense as a potential trade partner for the Sixers. In Eric Gordon, they have a player who seems like a perfect fit. But even before Durant hit the market, Houston seemed determined to extract more than a pound of flesh in any deal with Daryl Morey. It makes little sense to back down now if there is even the slightest potential of Gordon’s $18 million-plus salary playing a role in facilitating a Durant trade.
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