There’s “optimism” that the Rockets will have an extension in place with Kevin Durant before the regular season begins on October 21, ESPN’s Shams Charania said Wednesday on NBA Today (Twitter video link).
Speculation about a new contract with Durant has been ongoing since Houston reached an agreement to acquire him from Phoenix in June. He’s currently on a $54.7MM expiring deal and will become a free agent next summer unless a new contract can be worked out.
Durant stated at media day that he expects to sign an extension with the Rockets, although he told reporters he wasn’t sure when it might happen. It has been suggested that the team would like to work out a rookie scale extension with Tari Eason first so it has a better grasp on its finances before finalizing a deal with Durant.
With a projected $166MM salary cap for 2026/27, Durant is currently eligible for an extension worth up to $119.1MM over two years. That number would increase to $120.85MM on January 6, which is six months after the trade was finalized.
A report in August indicated that the Rockets are hesitant to give Durant a maximum-salary deal, noting that the extension will cover his age-38 and -39 seasons. That was accompanied by speculation that he might be willing to accept $100MM over two years, which would be a slight decrease from his current salary.
Durant and the Rockets aren’t necessarily under any pressure to finalize a new deal before the regular season begins, since he’ll remain extension-eligible for the entire season, through June 30, 2026.
In an interview on Tuesday with Kay Adams of FanDuel TV (Twitter video link), Durant confirmed that he will make his Rockets preseason debut in tonight’s game against Utah.
“Just get some good run up and down the floor, just to get your wind right,” Durant responded when asked about he hopes to accomplish. “It’s a different feel when you’re underneath the lights, and the whistle and the real game.”
IMO
Durant market value is 2 years $110 million
Rockets are unlikely to pay him Market price
Compare
76ers are unlikely to pay Grimes market price next contract
Kd and LeBron have to be the most selfish superstars we have ever had. Literally Skip the process taking the easy way out forming superteams after super team. LeBron or KD don’t really know how to win unless they are overwhelming favorite or a sucumstance happens. (3 months off bubble/ Draymond suspension and boget injury) Both only won with Dwade (won a chip already. Steph Curry ( won a chip already) at this point they are not playing to win but money and longevity stats.
Im almost positive you started watching basketball in 2020 lmao
Probably played more basketball than you’ve actually watched on TV. Instead of just saying I just started watching basketball. How about you refute what I said with facts but I’m 100% sure you can. Everything I said actually happened in our facts
You can unpuff your chest big guy. If you actually think that LeBron has only been on “super teams” and that he’s only had success when on those “super teams” then you are as dumb as you sound.
Please go ahead and give me an example of a player in the NBA right now who “knows how to win” and isn’t on a championship favorite team.
Did you read my post.NO. I said they skipped the process of building a winning team. LeBron and KD are great players. Nobody can take that from them. However it doesn’t excuse or take away that they skipped the process.
LeBron and KD’s first team were built they were drafted to them. Since they left CLEVELAND and OKC they have created superteams and connected with already championship players to win their first rings (Miami for LeBron and Golden State for KD)
2nd outside of LeBrons Miami championships. They have been surrounded by circumstances to win both championships 2016 (Draymond green suspension the only suspension in NBA finals history) 2020 bubble championship (3-Month layoff which is the exact time of a complete off-season to jump right back into the playoffs skipping the grind of an NBA season and not having fans or travel in the playoffs or changes to games)
So yes everything I said was facts.
Your last point was what superstar He’s not on a championship contender. Well everyone since 2020 built there championship team without teaming up. G Greek freak and Middleton were drafted to Milwaukee, Brown and Tatum were drafted to Boston. Curry Thompson and green won without KD and were drafted to the warriors. Joker and Murray were drafted to Denver. Sga was drafted to to OKC and they signed one player in hardenstein.
So bro you just expose yourself as a casual fan or a Super LeBron lover. You have no idea what you are talking about and thought you could attack me with insults. So unless you come back with facts refuting every point that I just said I have no reason to respond cuz you don’t know what you’re talking about.
Listen bud, I’d love to sit down for 30 minutes and craft a response that makes you look silly but we clearly see success differently.
So, if you’d like me to refute all of those points, I am both bored and drunk enough to do so. So long as you answer this first.
Is the only way to measure success of a player by counting rings that their team won?
Why do you play the game? To win right. So if I score a 10000 points in a career and never win a championship was I personally successful can’t answer that for each individual but I didn’t accomplish the main reason you play the game.
2nd yes it’s a team accomplishment but a superstar player has the biggest impact of winning. Just like a QB does. We are talking about the top 20 players of all time chips are what you are evaluated on. When your talking about a role player no. So yes to answer your question you can’t be a top 10 player without multiple championships.
The Rockets are a superteam? Haha awesome! This is news to me. Here I was thinking the Rockets were a bottom feeder that rebuilt and overachieved after years of pain, then TRADED for Durant. But yeah you just keep spitting that narrative that “Durant joined a Rockets superteam”. Lol.
When did I say the rockets are a superteams. Kd is 37 he is not a superstar player. All-star yes. Plus this team lost to GS last year. I said before In KD’s prime. Y’all just make up anything and don’t read at all
According to ESPN prediction this season
Warriors 56 wins
Rockets 47 wins
Do you believe it?
If all games were played on paper, the Warriors are definitely in a position to potentially have more wins than the Rockets.
If if’s and but’s were candies and nuts we’d all have a wonderful Christmas.
Warriors aren’t winning 50 gms. All about the playoffs for them.
I posted the link, they have the Knicks at 47, 3rd in the east
They could end up right at 50 as long as Steph and Jimmy stay healthy.
Hilarious.
No, because neither is likely, they’re just the results of Pelton’s model:
“To project teams, I start with player ratings based on a combination of my SCHOENE stats-based projections and luck-adjusted regularized adjusted plus-minus (RAPM) provided by Krishna Narsu that covers the past three seasons. For each team, I project games played based on those missed to injury over the past three years and current absences then subjectively guess at the distribution of playing time.”
Thanks for posting, it’s funny that his model ends up with GSW being 2nd only to OKC (59.2), and the best in the East Cavs only get 50.1.
Here’s the link, enjoy:
link to espn.com
Wow, $60 million a season to play 35 games, that’s crazy
How many more years gonna extend the geezer? Should just let him play out the year with his injury history.
Trade his old ass
Be silly to extend longer than a year
KD is one of best conditioned athletes in the world. He’s about to rewrite the record books. We may never see another one like him. Don’t let me interrupt the hate. Players have nothing to do with team cap. Or market value. Player haters
People that know basketball understand that an understanding/commitment for his extension deal happened as part of signing him.
All this media clickbait is irrelevant, and just for show.
Nice to see he decided to suit up against a bottom 3-4 team in the league, he wouldn’t want to risk straining himself.
Seems likely to me that KD and the Rockets already have a verbal agreement and it’s just a matter of getting Tari’s deal done before finalizing KD’s extension.