Kevin Durant has played for five teams during his NBA career, with his latest stop in Houston, thanks to an NBA trade that the Phoenix Suns made last season.
The Suns initially acquired Durant in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder, and four first-round picks. However, two years after he arrived in Phoenix, the team attempted to trade him ahead of last season’s trade deadline, with the Houston Rockets, Miami Heat, and Minnesota Timberwolves popping up in speculation.
Reports suggested Durant was made the scapegoat when the team was unsuccessful in attempts to reach the NBA Finals, despite having him with All-Star Devin Booker in the lineup.
Last summer, Phoenix finally traded KD to the Rockets for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft (Khaman Maluach), and five second-round picks.
Months ago, KD expressed he was hurt over the trade situation, saying he felt like a “scapegoat” who was “booted out of the building.”
On Tuesday night, he returns to his former city when his Rockets clash with the Suns in a battle of two teams with postseason aspirations.
Ahead of the matchup, Durant revealed his current feelings about that trade situation, indicating he felt like he had moved on, despite initially being a bit “sour” over what transpired with Phoenix.
“I’m pretty much over it. At the time, it was tough to take. A place I wanted to be. I wanted to keep building, but it’s the business of the league, and it’s the business of basketball,” he said.
“You not gonna be in the same place all the time, so it is what it is. Yeah, I was sour early on, you know? But I think I’ve gotten over it. Time heals all, and let’s move on,” Durant told reporters ahead of the Rockets taking on the Suns.
Tuesday night’s game carries important implications as teams are still jockeying for positions in the postseason. KD’s Rockets already have the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference with a 49-29 record and have a shot of moving up depending on how things go for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Meanwhile, his former team has a 43-35 record, which is currently good for the No. 7 spot in the West. While they could fall a spot, they already secured participation in next week’s SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament to determine which seed they’ll have for the NBA Playoffs.
However, they also have a slim chance to move up to the No. 6 seed, and while Durant gets a chance to give them an impactful loss, he told reporters his return doesn’t hold “much sentimental value.”
“It’s not much sentimental value between me and this place. It’s a great place to live. I definitely loved living here, but I was only here for a short amount of time,” he said.
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