Kevin Durant breaks silence since trade request from Nets, sends out cryptic tweet

We’ve heard a lot about Kevin Durant in recent days since he requested a trade away from the Brooklyn Nets earlier this week, but we hadn’t heard from Durant himself. That changed on Saturday as Durant took to Twitter amid the rampant rumors regarding his future to share the following message to his millions of followers: 

“The ones who were locked in that gym with me know what it is, they know what I’m about. If u haven’t been in there with me, ask around.” 

The message is obviously very brief, and vague, and does little to address the myriad of questions the masses have for the superstar forward, like what exactly led to him requesting a trade? Or, where would he like to continue his career, if not in Brooklyn? The Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns were floated as the two teams on the top of Durant’s list of preferred destinations, but what if a trade won’t work with either of those teams? After all, Durant reportedly wants to play alongside the stars on those squads, but it seems unlikely the Nets trade Durant without getting a star back in return. 

Given Durant’s superior skill set, virtually every team in the league would love to add the former MVP to its roster, and Brooklyn’s phones have assuredly been blowing up in recent days as a result. While Durant has expressed where he would like to play, ultimately his future is in Brooklyn’s hands as it can send him wherever it chooses given that Durant still has four years remaining on his current contract — one that does not include a no-trade clause. So while the Nets may try to appease Durant by sending him to a destination that he’s happy with, they’ll likely just end up accepting the best overall offer, regardless of where it comes from. 

One team to keep an eye on when it comes to the Durant sweepstakes is the Toronto Raptors as they could potentially have the interest and assets to get a deal done, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. The Raptors traded a haul for a disgruntled superstar in Kawhi Leonard back in 2018 despite the fact that Leonard made it clear he didn’t want to play in Toronto, and it worked out pretty well as the team won the NBA title in 2019. Perhaps the Raptors will look to have similar success with Durant. 

Whether it’s Toronto or another team, whoever ultimately lands Durant will likely have to part with an unprecedented haul. After all, it’s not often one of the best players of all time is available with multiple years still remaining on his current contract. It’s going to be pretty fascinating to see how the situation ultimately plays out.