If the Nets trade Kevin Durant, a superstar in his prime on a four-year deal, they reportedly want a “historic haul” in return. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, two massive superstar trades from the summer of 2019 may provide the framework, and serve as goals for the Nets to eclipse.
That summer, the Lakers sent Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, three future first-round picks and a first round pick swap to the Pelicans for Anthony Davis.
Weeks later, their crosstown rival, the Clippers, sent an even bigger package to the Thunder for Paul George. Oklahoma City received a young star guard in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, forward Danilo Gallinari, five first-round picks and two additional first-round pick swaps.
As good as Davis and George are, they probably don’t reach the level that the NBA has seen from Kevin Durant when healthy in recent years. Wojnarowski says Brooklyn will look to eclipse those deals.
“They intend to get back something of a historic haul. They look at what the Clippers had to pay for Paul George, the Lakers had to pay for Anthony Davis. They want more than that,” he said.
What makes the situation particularly unique is the four-year deal that Durant signed last year, which begins ahead of the 2022–23 season, a deal he signed before either Kyrie Irving or James Harden had committed to the franchise long term. That gives the Nets tremendous leverage to trade Durant to any team that can give them the best offer.
On Thursday, Wojnarowski reported that half of the league had already inquired about Durant, later telling Van Pelt that some teams had gone so far as to call the Nets and up their offer, effectively bidding against themselves without knowing what the rest of the market looks like, in an effort to remain competitive in perhaps the biggest trade sweepstakes in league history.
Given some of the other trades that have come down this week, like the Hawks sending three first-rounders to the Spurs for Dejounte Murray, and the Jazz landing four first rounders and a slew of players for Rudy Gobert, the best offer the Nets receive may truly be astronomical.
