By Durant’s Desired Destinations
The NBA offseason has been dominated by the news of Kevin Durant demanding a trade from the Brooklyn Nets. Durant originally stated his preferred destinations as Miami and Phoenix but as the summer has progressed those teams don’t seem like viable options. Due to the Designated Rookie Rule which affects the Nets because Ben Simmons is on their roster. The Nets can not acquire Bam Adebayo from the Heat or Devin Booker from the Suns via trade. Due to this restriction which does not allow Phoenix or Miami to use their most valuable assets, it essentially takes both teams out of the sweepstakes.
Kevin Durant has now stated his desired destinations are the Sixers and the Celtics. There is a zero percent chance Durants gets traded to the Sixers. Philly simply does not have the assets to acquire Durant. They have no valuable first round picks to trade Brooklyn because they used all of them to acquire James Harden from the Nets at the deadline. Embiid is untouchable, so the best the Sixers could offer the Nets would be a package centered around Tyrese Maxey, Matisse Thybulle and second round picks. Which is obviously not nearly enough to acquire Kevin Durant.
Celtics are the Only Option
The Celtics are the only team in the NBA that checks every box. Durant wants to go there, they have the assets to trade for him, and they are good enough to make a deal with the Nets and still be championship contenders. The Celtics are coming off an incredible season which culminated in a playoff run that saw the Celtics sweep the Durant led Nets in round one, get through Giannis and the Bucks in an epic 7 game battle in round two, and survive Jimmy Butler playing out of his mind and squeak past the Heat in round three. Finally taking the leap and capturing a Finals berth with the core of Tatum, Brown and Smart. While the season was a massive success they did not reach the ultimate goal of winning the title, as they lost in 6 to the Warriors.
Celtics Offseason So Far
This offseason the Cetlics have improved. They traded for Malcolm Brogdon and signed Danillo Gallinari. These moves solved a big issue the Celtics had last season, which was legit bench scoring. Brogdon has averaged 21 and 19 points per game in the last two years and Gallinari is a 6 foot 10 wing who is a very good three point shooter who constantly averages 12-16 points every year. The Celtics are now the favorites to win the championship this upcoming year. Despite this the Celtics should be going all in to try and acquire Durant.
There has been a lot of hesitance from Boston fans and media about the possibility of a Durant trade. Many people don’t want the core of this team shaken up and If the Cetlics were to acquire Durant the package would be centered around Jaylen Brown. The thought amongst some is “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it”, the Celtics just made the finals and their core is young why break it up?
Tim Bontemps On Potential KD Trade
Why change anything? The answer to that question is simple it in order to win championships in the NBA you must have a top 5 player in the league. All of NBA History tells us this. Since 1980 there have only been 3 teams that have won a championship without having a top 5. And in just the last 10 years 9 of the teams to win championships have been led by a no doubt top 5 player. Because of Durant’s shocking struggles in this year’s playoffs (which has been enhanced by recency bias) his stock may be at an all time low. Durant is still without a doubt a top 5 player in the league. This past year he averaged 30 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Along with shooting 52 percent from the field and making Second Team All NBA.
Now when it comes to Jaylen Brown the common thought amongst those who are agaist dealing the star is, is it worth it to trade a young star for KD who is 9 years older than Brown. Jaylen Brown will certianly be a great player in this league for the next 9 years, however there is no garuntee that if the Celtics don’t move him he will stay on the Celtics for that whole time. In today’s NBA stars leave in free agency and request trades the moment they feel there is a better place for them to be. There is no telling how Brown will feel in 2 years when his contract is up and could very well decide to move on.
The Celtics are also in the same conference as Giannis Antetokounmpo. Giannis is the best player in the league and will be a force in the East and the NBA for the next decade. The Celtics have to always be ready to improve their team in order to stay on top.
Go All In
To win Championships in the NBA teams need to be willing to take big swings and go all in. And it is very rare everything lines up like it for a team like it is for the Celtics. A top 5 player is available, the Celtics have a championship level roster and have enough assets to trade for a player of KD’s caliber. The Celtics as presently constructed are the favorites to win the 2022 championship and no matter what will be contenders going into next season. But if they were to acquire Durant they would be the biggest favorites to win the championship since the KD Warriors. And they would set themsleves up to win multiple championships over the next couple years.
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