Recent reports indicate that Kevin Durant will be traded this summer. The Dallas Mavericks are among the rumored trade destinations. However, the Mavericks would be wise to steer clear of Durant. A possible Durant trade solves nothing for the Mavericks, in fact, it would be the final nail in the coffin. Let’s dive into why the Mavericks should avoid a Durant trade at all costs.
Kevin Durant Trade to Mavericks Would Sink Franchise
Trading Luka Doncic Already Looks Disastrous for Mavs
The Mavericks fell to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday, marking their third loss in the last four games. What’s worse, one of those losses came by way of Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers. Add in a plethora of injuries to key players such as Anthony Davis, Caleb Martin, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, and now P.J. Washington, and the Mavs look dangerously close to pressing the panic button.
Let’s survey the landscape since trading Doncic. While Dallas has struggled in their last few games, the Lakers are surging ahead. Now sitting in second place in a tough Western Conference, LeBron James and Luka seem to improve their chemistry by leaps and bounds every time they step on the court.
To add insult to injury, Quentin Grimes—a player the Mavericks acquired last offseason but dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers for Caleb Martin at the trade deadline—went for a career-high 44 points over the weekend with his new team. Martin, who struggled under a catastrophic season for the 76ers, has yet to step on the court for the Dallas.
The Spiraling Phoenix Suns
If there’s a team even more desperate than the Mavs, it’s the Phoenix Suns. To say their season is a disappointment would be vastly understating their state of affairs. A team with Durant and Devin Booker sits one spot out of the play-in tournament, four games back of the Mavericks. Now boasting the toughest remaining strength of schedule according to Tankathon, their fate to miss the postseason seems all but sealed.
With this in mind, a Durant trade this offseason looks inevitable. Top insider Shams Charania confirmed these speculations. The Suns mortgaged their entire future on pairing the Slim Reaper with Booker and Bradley Beal. If this season ends as badly as expected, trading Durant makes sense for both parties; Phoenix can recuperate draft capital and squeeze value out of their only remaining asset, and Durant can play with a championship contender during the twilight of his career.
How A Durant To Dallas Trade Could Work
Even if Durant wants to go to Dallas, what mutual interest does Phoenix have? Portraying the best-case scenario, Suns owner Mat Ishbia has shown a reluctance to tank and rebuild the franchise. In fact, quite the opposite. Ever since Ishbia agreed to buy the Suns in late 2022, he’s made nothing but aggressive, win-now moves.
If the Suns want to keep contending and move off of Durant, the Mavericks would be an enticing trade partner. To make the money work, Dallas would need to ship out Klay Thompson, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, and one of Naji Marshall or Caleb Martin. Those are critical role players that Phoenix could use to salvage the current anemic roster built around Booker and Beal.
Now the question is, would Dallas actually do this? They might have already given us their answer during this year’s trade deadline. In his February 6th appearance on The Putback, Ian Begley reported that the Mavs were “aggressive” in their pursuit of Durant. He went on to say that Dallas attempted to “find other teams to get involved so they could make the math work and bring Kevin Durant to Dallas.”
“I was told that the Mavericks were very aggressive, as recently as Wednesday, trying to find other teams to get involved so they could make the math work and bring Kevin Durant to Dallas. Obviously, nothing coming to fruition there.” – @IanBegley
Ian, @ChelseaSherrod and… pic.twitter.com/l9qGPrkUZw
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) February 6, 2025
Negotiations likely fell apart because of the logistics involved in sending out multiple players during midseason due to roster obligations (all teams must carry a minimum of 14 players with very few exceptions). These requirements aren’t present in the offseason, so trading several players for only one in return becomes much easier.
The “Big Three” Trap
If the Mavs go down this road, they’d be the latest team to fall into the “Big three” trap. From the moment that LeBron teamed up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, NBA front offices have salivated over finding ways to acquire as many superstars as possible. The biggest examples of this phenomenon in recent memory include the Brooklyn Nets (Kyrie Irving, James Harden, and Durant) and the current Phoenix Suns (Booker, Durant, and Bradley Beal).
In both cases, the teams involved sacrificed first-round draft picks and roster depth in order to bring in top-end talent. The results of this strategy, while admittedly driving media attention and primetime TV spots, are overwhelmingly negative on the court.
The NBA is more talented across the board than ever before. In other words, it’s no longer a superstar’s league. Back in the days of Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, or even Kobe Bryant the chasm in talent between the top players and the rest of the league stretched far and wide.
Fast forward to 2025, and skilled players are more abundant than ever before. All you need to do is look at the winners: the last seven years produced seven different champions. Balance and versatility now usurp top-heavy teams that favor expensive, big-name players at the expense of roster cohesion.
While a trio of Durant, Irving, and Davis would be formidable, they’d run into the same tried and true complications. Whether it’s injuries, egos, or the newly feared Second Apron, it’s hard to imagine any future for the Mavericks that isn’t bleak.
Photo credit: © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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