Could Nets All-Star Kevin Durant's trade request create 'ripple effect' NBA doesn't want?
Kevin Durant shook up free agency by requesting a trade out of Brooklyn and putting Phoenix and Miami atop his trade wish list even with a four-year, $198 million max extension.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is still trying to determine Durant’s intentions.
“I don’t know whether his — whether he requested a trade or demanded one, frankly,” Silver said during a press conference Tuesday in Las Vegas, where theNBA Summer League is being held.
“Look, this needs to be a two-way street. Teams provide enormous security and guarantees to players and the expectation is, in return, they will meet their end of the bargain. I’m realistic that there’s always conversations that are going to go on behind closed doors between players and their representatives and the teams. But we don’t like to see players requesting trades, and we don’t like to see it playing out the way it is.”
Silver met with the NBA’s Board of Governors this week in Las Vegas to discuss a number of topics, but said Durant’s situation wasn’t one of them during Tuesday’s meeting.
“I know no one has suggested to me that Kevin Durant has said he’s not willing to live up to the terms of his contract,” Silver said. “So to say you would like to play in another city is one thing. To say I’m not going to appear for training camp or certainly games would potentially be a violation of his contract.”
Silver added that he doesn’t know “what is exactly going on right now” between Durant and the Nets.
“Certainly, there’s a lot of buzz in this town about possible moves, but from that standpoint, I feel more like a fan, absorbing information that way,” he added.
Nets general manager Sean Marks has been in Vegas during Summer League talking with teams as he reportedly is looking for an All-Star or All-Star caliber player and multiple first-round draft picks in exchange for Durant.
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“When a player asks to be moved, it has a ripple effect on a lot of other players, on that player’s team and other teams,” Silver said. “So, it’s not just potentially the league or the team governors who are impacted by that, but lots of other players as well."
The Jazz and Timberwolves have helped set a bar Brooklyn is asking teams to match in their deal that sent three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert from Utah to Minnesota for Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler (No. 22 pick in 2022 Draft), Jarred Vanderbilt, 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029 first-round picks and a 2026 pick swap.
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Silver stressed the NBA plans to talk with National Basketball Player Association about “remedies for this,” as the current Collective Bargaining Agreement officially expires after the 2023-24 season.
“It’s one of those issues that as we move into this collective bargaining cycle, which we are just beginning now, we intend to discuss with our Players Association and see if there are remedies for this,” Silver said. “Again, as I said, it will never be the case when players won’t be unhappy in certain situations, but we don’t want to see it playing out the way it is now.”
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Both sides have an opt-out they can exercise in December.
“I think it is something where there is mutuality of interests between the players collectively and the league, having more stability,” Silver said. "So that’s something we’ll be discussing with the union."
The NBPA has a new executive director in Tamika Tremaglio, who was hired in September of last year to replace Michele Roberts.
“I think she’s in the process of getting up to speed with the union staff and her executive committee,” Silver said. “We are building a relationship, she and I and her group and our team. We both recognize that this is around the right time that we should start engaging with each other and exchanging data and having a better understanding of what both sides’ needs and issues are.”
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The NBPA also has a new president in Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, who replaced Suns All-Star guard Chris Paul in that role.
“We have a very productive relationship with our Players Association,” Silver said. “We are not necessarily going to completely eliminate players asking to be moved, but we are going to find a way to move the attention back onto the court.”
Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Could Durant's trade request create 'ripple effect' NBA doesn't want?
