The reason, of course, that the Nets say they’re willing to drag it out as long as necessary is that they’re trying to build at least a modicum of leverage as they make the playoffs for what should be a historic return for Durant. who, given his still-premium talent and his contract status (whoever trades for Durant, in theory, will lock him up for the next four seasons) is arguably the most attractive trade bait to ever hit the NBA’s waters . Indeed, no one is taking Durant for anything but a huge package. But there are degrees of massiveness, and it looks like the Nets, as they should at this early point in the process, are asking people. Consider this idea from Yahoo’s Vincent Goodwill, who recently appeared on Chris Haynes’ “Posted Up” podcast, about an offer Brooklyn made to the Minnesota Timberwolves: “I’ve heard that Brooklyn came to Minnesota and said we want Karl-Anthony Towns, we want Ant-man (Anthony Edwards) and we want four draft picks.” From Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic: The Wolves also made several calls to Brooklyn about Kevin Durant, sources said, but the Nets wanted established All-Stars and a mountain of picks. Minnesota wasn’t willing to part with either Edwards or Towns in a KD-centric deal, so there was no traction. The Wolves apparently asked for information on Durant before deciding to send four future first-round picks (three unprotected) and another potential trade, along with 2022 No. 22 overall pick Kessler, plus Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley , Leandro Bolmaro and Jarred Vanderbilt , to the Utah Jazz for Rudy Gobert. Many argued that this was a ridiculous package to give up Gobert. I’ll tell you this: The package the Nets wanted for Durant would be a hundred times more ridiculous. Yes, Durant is Durant. But the guy is entering his 16th season. You never know when the decline will begin, but rest assured that it will. The Wolves would have absolutely zero future beyond Durant. Edwards, gone. Cities, they are gone. All first round draft picks for the foreseeable future are gone. And even for the years that Minnesota would have Durant, what chance would Durant have of competing, in an absolutely loaded Western Conference to boot, with D’Angelo Russell as his best teammate? Zero. So, yes, the Nets will be shooting for the stars with this Durant deal. And they’ll probably end up landing on the moon. But if that Minnesota reputation is any indication of their expectations at this point, they’ll have to give up on that dream.
