Kevin Durant and the New York Knicks had mutual interest ahead of the trade deadline when the Phoenix Suns made him available. The Knicks even went so far as making an offer for Durant even though no deal came to fruition.
“There was some mutual interest Kevin Durant and the Knicks at the trade deadline,” said Shams Charania. “The Knicks made an offer for Kevin Durant at the NBA trade deadline. Obviously, there was no Kevin Durant trade. We’ll see what happens in the next couple of weeks. Do they go star hunting? At the bare minimum, they’re going to have to add some more depth. That’s going to be a requirement of this team this offseason.”
Because the Knicks are below the second apron, they could have more flexibility than some of their rivals in the Eastern Conference to execute a major trade.
Charania also reported that the Knicks will pursue whether they could trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo should he become available, while Durant is firmly on the market.
Durant has one season remaining on his current contract and is expected to sign an extension of some kind upon his trade to a new team. Durant was strongly linked to the Knicks ahead of his 2019 free agency, but he and Kyrie Irving eventually chose to sign with the Brooklyn Nets.