Kevin Durant trade: Nets not that interested in Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole

But ESPN NBA analyst Zach Lowe believes the Nets aren’t convinced the headliners of the package are the stars they are seeking in a Durant trade. “That’s where you negotiate, though because you wouldn’t end up giving up all of those players,” Lowe said during a conversation with Warriors reporter Kendra Andrews during the latest episode of “The Lowe Post” podcast. “That’s just too many players to give up if you’re giving up a lot of picks too. By the way, the Warriors, for a good team, they only owe one future first-round pick. They owe it to Memphis via the [Andre] Iguodala salary dump [in 2019], which feels like eons ago. They’re actually set up to … they have more flexibility. trade-wise, not financially. Financially, they are breaking all the barriers, but more flexibility trade-wise than most teams. “That’s where you would negotiate. You would end up keeping a Kuminga or a Moody. The issues are Wiggins and Simmons. You run into the designated rookie fiasco. The intel I have is that the Nets are not super high on Wiggins or Poole as sort of centerpiece players. Then you get to the other guys who are relatively unproven in the NBA. So I don’t know if there ever really was a deal there that the Nets would have done. Obviously, you have to explore it if you’re the Warriors.”
Source: Ali Thanawalla @ Yahoo! Sports

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

NBA Math @NBA_Math
🗣NEW @HardwoodKnocks
📋 Can the Pelicans Enter the Kevin Durant Sweepstakes AND Keep Brandon Ingram?
🔘 Should KD interest NOP? (2:04)
🔘 The trade (4:48)
🔘 Does NOP have top KD package? (16:46)
🎧 https://t.co/INaocm1wwu
🍎 https://t.co/l3rkRXhGcB
✳️ https://t.co/j4oeHFGNI8 pic.twitter.com/oF8mYr84SL – 6:03 PM

Zach Lowe @ZachLowe_NBA
Lowe Post around-the-league mega-podcast: @Kendra Andrews on the Warriors offseason/KD; @bykevinclark on his beloved Magic/Banchero/future; @Adam Mares on the always under-the-radar Nuggets:
Apple: apple.co/3ou8pxb
Spotify: spoti.fi/3cAtG5V – 1:22 PM

Tim Bontemps @TimBontemps
New ESPN story: With the help of @Kevin Pelton and @Matt Williams, we ranked 15 of the biggest superstar trades of the past 20 years – an exercise that shows what teams look for in these types of deals, and what a potential Kevin Durant trade could look like: espn.com/nba/story/_/id… – 11:12 AM

Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
Peach Jam quarterfinal matchups:
Durant / Team Final (6:30 – Court 2)
Brad Beal / Takeover  (6:30 – Court 5)
City Rocks/ Houston Hoops (8 – Court 2)
Indy Heat / Mokan (8 – Court 3/4) pic.twitter.com/5JGRLuqPrb – 9:04 AM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
On today’s @PHNX_Suns, we brainstormed a few non-KD trades the Suns should keep in mind for the future:
🎧 https://t.co/A51s2pEU7P pic.twitter.com/RAXxmggWfp – 10:05 PM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
5 potential Suns trades if Kevin Durant doesn’t happen – https://t.co/O4ml5XVBDT via @PHNX_Suns pic.twitter.com/B9iYk66src – 8:02 PM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Warriors out of Durant sweepstakes? GM says “I like our team and where it’s at” nba.nbcsports.com/2022/07/21/war… – 7:46 PM

Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
After Team Durant missed 2 FTS @KwameEvansJr makes the 3rd and Durant beats @MokanBasketball 61-60 in a very highly played game pic.twitter.com/1sOwkh3fe4 – 6:43 PM

CBS NBA @CBSSportsNBA
Warriors GM Bob Myers suggests team is out of Kevin Durant sweepstakes: ‘I like our team and where it’s at’
cbssports.com/nba/news/warri… – 4:19 PM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
On Jordan Clarkson, Harrison Barnes and a few other trade targets for the Suns if the Kevin Durant deal doesn’t fall into place: bit.ly/3B5bFGY – 3:09 PM

Shandel Richardson @ShandelRich
Old video shows Jimmy Butler saying he could play in the NFL, Kevin Durant hilariously disagrees #miamiheat si.com/nba/heat/miami… – 1:51 PM

Ben Rohrbach @brohrbach
For @The Vertical: I wrote about Rudy Gobert, Dejounte Murray, Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell and the the gamble of mortgaging your future in the NBA’s player empowerment era.
sports.yahoo.com/behind-the-mad… – 1:41 PM

Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
I caught up with Warriors GM Bob Myers at the ESPYs. Considering what Myers said here generally, safe to say Warriors don’t plan to reunite with Kevin Durant. Myers: “I like our team and where it’s at. I want to give the guys a chance to do it again.” https://t.co/rBinmolg4O pic.twitter.com/eVN1ADLiOa – 10:36 AM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
The Suns were right to put all their eggs in the Kevin Durant basket, but if a KD trade never comes, what next? For @PHNX_Suns, I drew up a few trades they should pivot toward in that worst-case scenario: https://t.co/O4ml5XVBDT pic.twitter.com/ROwhCXGi3Z – 10:03 AM

Josh Martin @Bulls_Wire
Max Kellerman dreamed up a blockbuster Kevin Durant trade to Chicago, but Jay Williams isn’t on board. bullswire.usatoday.com/2022/07/19/kev… – 1:00 AM

Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
If the Suns don’t wind up with Kevin Durant, how would you feel about their offseason? We discussed on today’s @PHNX_Suns Podcast:
🎧 https://t.co/A51s2pEU7P pic.twitter.com/j0lCg0h52N – 8:02 PM

Steve Bulpett @SteveBHoop
New at Heavy Sports…
— NBA exec thinks we’ve already found a first round error… which will make one team happy.
— Sometimes it takes quite a while for a trade demand to get honored. So maybe KD shouldn’t pack just yet.
bit.ly/3zjZODv – 3:24 PM

Barry Jackson @flasportsbuzz
You guys are asking me KD questions under every Dolphins/Marlins post. Here’s the deal: Nets aren’t tempted by Herro-led package.Heat’s chances thus hinge on Durant insisting to be moved & to only Miami/ Phoenix AND encouraging other teams not to pursue him, which hasn’t happened – 3:09 PM

StatMuse @statmuse
LeBron is the only player ever to average a triple-double in a Finals series.
33.6 PPG
12.0 RPG
10.0 APG
56.4 FG%
in 2017 Finals
If the Warriors didn’t have KD, would the Cavs have won? pic.twitter.com/tVsLF3IcQC – 12:57 PM

Kamenetzky Brothers @KamBrothers
Wednesday’s @LockedOnLakers podcast with guest @AdamArmbrecht from @LockedOnNets! We discuss where things stand with all Lakers-Nets rumors, and the statuses of KD, Kyrie, Russ, etc. #FirstListen @LockedOnNBAPods @LockedOnNetwork
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/whe… – 12:29 PM

Kevin Durant @KDTrey5
texassports.com/news/2022/7/20… – 11:58 AM

Get Up @GetUpESPN
“I don’t even think that the Nets have a 100% understanding of why Kevin [Durant] asked for a trade.”
—@Brian Windhorst pic.twitter.com/1Y6enEKLTp – 10:52 AM

Emiliano Carchia @Sportando
Andrew Wiggins: I still wish I didn’t get [vaccinated], to be honest with you sportando.basketball/en/andrew-wigg… – 9:54 AM

Anthony Chiang @Anthony_Chiang
From yesterday: During a Tuesday appearance at Jr. Heat Basketball Camp, Max Strus addressed the Heat’s offseason moves, the Kevin Durant rumors, his mentality entering next season and more miamiherald.com/sports/nba/mia… – 9:24 AM

Kurt Helin @basketballtalk
Latest update: Both Durant, Mitchell trades likely going to take time nba.nbcsports.com/2022/07/20/lat… – 8:01 AM

More on this storyline

On Thursday, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported an update on the trade talks surrounding Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant. Windhorst: “The truth is we truly have a one of a kind situation on the trade market. Durant’s price is so high that nobody can afford to pay it, because if you execute a trade that makes your team weaker, then the point of you even calling to acquire Kevin Durant is failed. So here we have something that’s extremely valuable that nobody wants to buy at its price. So when that happens two things usually happen in the market, in the supply and demand world; one is the price either gets lowered, or two it comes off the market. So right now, what we have is everybody waiting for the price to get lowered as the Nets mull taking it off the market. As of right now, as I put my ear to the ground in the NBA, I’m not hearing anything changing as far as the demand phrase of this process.” -via Sports Illustrated / July 22, 2022

[Tyler Herro] has reached this strange point just as he becomes the key veteran in any potential Miami Heat trade package for Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell, or whichever star becomes available next. The Heat so far have not gotten much traction on either front, sources say, but they are still trying and can never be counted out. -via ESPN / July 22, 2022

In other words, don’t expect the Warriors to reunite with Kevin Durant. Sure, they know first-hand how valuable Durant can be — he helped them win back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018 — but after claiming another championship without him, the Warriors appear to be comfortable moving forward with what they have. -via NBA.com / July 21, 2022

When Wiggins was traded to the Golden State Warriors in 2019, many questioned the move, wondering whether Wiggins could ever be a key cog on a championship roster. Then, something happened. The culture in Golden State brought out the best in Wiggins. “They just let you play your game,” Wiggins told Fox News Digital. “They put everyone in a position to do well. Great coaching staff, great organization, great people around that know basketball. And my teammates are amazing. Playing alongside future Hall of Famers, you learn a lot. They keep you motivated.” -via FOXnews.com / July 20, 2022

Andrew Wiggins made his first All-Star team this year and was a crucial part of the Golden State Warriors’ run to the NBA title, but he still regrets one thing he did this season. “I still wish I didn’t get [vaccinated], to be honest with you,” Wiggins told FanSided. -via ESPN / July 19, 2022

Unlike Irving, Wiggins did get vaccinated before the start of the NBA season. “I did it, and I was an All-Star this year and champion, so that was the good part, just not missing out on the year, the best year of my career,” Wiggins said. “But for my body, I just don’t like putting all that stuff in my body, so I didn’t like that and I didn’t like that it wasn’t my choice. I didn’t like that it was either get this or don’t play.” -via ESPN / July 19, 2022

If Poole regresses—or simply entrenches himself as a strong starter-level player rather than a budding All-Star—then Golden State might be able to find an agreement closer to Anfernee Simons’ four-year, $100 million deal with Portland this summer. ‘”What’s the upside in locking him in now?'” one team cap strategist told B/R. ‘”He’s not Luka Doncic or Donovan Mitchell, who’ve proven they can carry a team. He’s close. If he does it again, you pay him. But prior to this year he was a borderline rotation player.'” -via Bleacher Report / July 19, 2022

The Warriors have several young assets on paper, including Jordan Poole, Jonathan Kuminga, James Wiseman and Moses Moody, but Golden State would be reluctant to give up all these assets in a Durant trade proposal, HoopsHype has learned. Andrew Wiggins would be an attractive trade chip and is coming off an All-Star season, but he can’t be included in a Durant trade at the moment, as explained in-depth by our USA TODAY colleagues at For The Win. -via HoopsHype / July 12, 2022

“Even when we were back at Golden State when I was walking on the court, [Poole] asked me was I good? Dapped me up,” Morant said. “Even some of their other players asked me on the side as well … That’s what it’s all about. We all at the end of the day, care for each other, all want everybody to succeed. So I don’t think there’s too much dirty players in this league to go and do anything. -via NBC Sports / July 10, 2022