San Antonio Spurs Rumors

Latest On Kevin Durant

June 14th, 2025 at 5:13pm CST by Rory Maher

Although the Suns cannot aggregate salaries in trades, they have been exploring ways to move below the second tax apron to ease some of the restrictions they’re currently facing. According to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link), as part of the Kevin Durant trade talks, Phoenix’s front office has larger constructs involving Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale in an effort to reduce the team’s payroll.

Dropping below the second apron is believed to be one of Phoenix’s “primary objectives” in a Durant deal, Fischer writes. That doesn’t mean the Suns are trying to cut costs for financial reasons, they just recognize how difficult it is to operate over that threshold in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, Fischer explains.

Sources tell Fischer that Phoenix hopes to acquire “starting-level talent” in exchange for Durant, with “quality draft capital” another desired part of the return package. Fischer hears the Suns have been evaluating first-round prospects “in the belief they will obtain at least one meaningful selection” in the 2025 draft.

While Shams Charania of ESPN reports that the Rockets are one of the teams most seriously engaged with the Suns for Durant, Fischer says Houston is “exceedingly reluctant” to meet Phoenix’s asking price. According to Fischer, the Suns view the Rockets as their ideal trade partner due to their combination of young talent and draft picks — Houston controls Phoenix’s first-rounders in 2025 (No. 10), 2027 and 2029.

Fischer adds that the Rockets’ front office recognizes this advantage and is “believed to be willing to go only so far” in its offer to Phoenix, indicating that the Suns might get more assets elsewhere.

League sources tell Fischer that the Timberwolves and Heat are the teams most frequently talked about as potential destinations for Durant. Fischer adds that the Spurs and Rockets have been cited by league executives as having interest in acquiring Durant, along with the Clippers and Raptors “to a lesser extent.” Fischer also speculates that Durant would enjoy the idea of returning to Texas — where he played collegiately — either with San Antonio or Houston.

That could be an important consideration because Durant holds a $54.7MM expiring contract. Fischer states that front offices are considering whether it’s worth the gamble to trade for Durant with no assurances that he will re-sign after next season.

Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets that there have been discussions between Minnesota and Phoenix regarding Durant, but “nothing is close” right now. Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reported on Wednesday that the Heat are interested in dealing for Durant, but “only at the right price.”

Ian Begley of SNY.tv considers it a “long shot” that the Knicks will get involved (Twitter link), echoing other reports from this week. Begley also points out that finding a starting center is among the Suns’ offseason priorities, and trading Durant may be their best opportunity to make that happen.

Fischer considers Minnesota’s Rudy Gobert the best center likely to be available in a Durant deal, but states that it’s difficult to create a workable trade scenario between the Wolves and Suns, who are both operating above the second apron. He points out that Minnesota will fall below the second apron if Naz Reid and Julius Randle both decline their player options, and Reid seems almost certain to do so. Otherwise, a trade between the two clubs would likely have to be agreed upon this month but not become official until after the moratorium is lifted in July.

Miami may be more realistic, according to Fischer, who notes that the city was on Durant’s list when he first asked the Nets for a trade. Fischer suggests that Andrew Wiggins and Duncan Robinson are among the players the Heat can send to Phoenix to help match salaries, and they have three first-rounders that can be moved: No. 20 this year, along with their picks in 2030 and 2032.

Sources tell Fischer that Miami was unwilling to part with Kel’el Ware and Jaime Jaquez at the trade deadline, and he speculates that its willingness to include Ware could be a “true swing factor” in a Phoenix deal.

The Spurs and other teams have been reluctant to surrender significant draft capital for Durant, according to Fischer, who reports that the Suns have limited interest in the players San Antonio has offered so far. Fischer states that it’s believed the Spurs are keeping Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle and the No. 2 pick in this year’s draft off limits and are only offering players such as Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson and Harrison Barnes.

Arthur Hill contributed to this report.

Western Notes: Spurs, Williamson, Nuggets, Wolves, Clippers

June 13th, 2025 at 2:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs are expected to hire Corliss Williamson to be an assistant coach on Mitch Johnson‘s new staff in San Antonio, league sources tell Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link).

A former star at Arkansas and a Sixth Man of the Year in the NBA, Williamson appeared in over 800 regular season games for four NBA teams from 1995-2007 and won championships at both the NCAA and NBA level. He transitioned into coaching in 2007 after retiring as a player, spending a few years with college programs in his home state of Arkansas before making the leap to the NBA.

Williamson, who has spent the past two years as a member of Chris Finch‘s coaching staff with the Timberwolves, has also had stints as an assistant in Sacramento, Orlando, and Phoenix.

Here are a few more items of interest from around the Western Conference:

Checking in on where things stand with the Nuggets‘ front office search, Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (subscription required) says the club’s goal is to resolve the situation before the June 25 draft, even though Denver doesn’t control a 2025 pick. Given how little chatter there has been about outside candidates for the job, in-house executives Ben Tenzer (the current interim general manager) and Tommy Balcetis still look like the best bets for the full-time position, Durando writes, though he acknowledges it’s possible the team has just done a very good job of keeping other targets under wraps.
While the Timberwolves will almost certainly be a taxpayer again in 2025/26, the big question they’ll have to answer is where they’ll draw the line, Yossi Gozlan writes in previewing the team’s offseason for The Third Apron (Substack link). Gozlan predicts Minnesota will try to get below the second tax apron either this offseason or at least by the end of 2025/26 to avoid having another future first-round pick frozen. He also explores how the team might handle its free agents and wonders if the Wolves could reduce their 2025/26 team salary by having Julius Randle decline his player option in order to sign a multiyear deal with a lower starting salary.
Keith Smith of Spotrac looks ahead to what’s on tap for the Clippers this offseason, discussing James Harden‘s contract situation, considering what the team might do with its other free agents, and evaluating whether an extension for Norman Powell makes sense, among other topics. We published our own Clippers offseason preview earlier this week.

Suns Engaged In KD Trade Talks With Rockets, Heat, Wolves

June 13th, 2025 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

With trade negotiations heating up ahead of the June 25 draft, the Rockets, Heat, and Timberwolves have been the teams most seriously engaged with the Suns in recent days about a potential deal for Kevin Durant, ESPN’s Shams Charania said during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday (Twitter video link).

“(The Suns have) had about six to eight teams reach out,” Charania said. “There’s been interest, there’s been some offers, there’s been some negotiations. But really in the last 24 to 48 hours, I’m told, the focus of the Suns’ conversations has been on a few of the teams: the Houston Rockets, the Miami Heat, and the Minnesota Timberwolves. I’m told those are the three teams right now where a lot of the focus for Durant lies.”

When Charania reported earlier this week that the Suns, Durant, and KD’s business partner and manager Rich Kleiman were sifting through potential trade scenarios, he mentioned those three clubs, along with the Knicks and Spurs, as possibilities for the superstar forward.

Since then, multiple reports from beat writers covering the Knicks have indicated New York isn’t pursuing Durant, while a report on Thursday suggested there’s growing skepticism about San Antonio acquiring the former MVP.

That doesn’t mean that Houston, Miami, and Minnesota are the only suitors still in the mix, however.

When John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (YouTube link) discussed the situation during a radio appearance on Thursday, he said he’s also keeping an eye on the Spurs, Raptors, and Clippers in addition to the Rockets, Heat, and Timberwolves, adding that there may be a couple other wild-card teams in play too. ESPN’s Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst also mentioned the Clippers today as a possible Durant suitor.

Gambadoro also mentioned that he believes Durant prefers to end up with one of the Texas teams – San Antonio and Houston – though that sounds more like informed speculation than hard reporting.

Interestingly, both Charania and Gambadoro believe a trade could be consummated well in advance of the draft. Gambadoro said during Thursday’s Burns & Gambo show that he’s predicting a deal will occur at some point next week. Asked on Friday on McAfee’s show about that report, Charania concurred.

“You said a week. I think it could be even sooner than that,” Charania said. “I think there’s some motivation with some teams. Potentially even sooner than seven days. Maybe in the next few days we could get some Kevin Durant trade action.”

As Kurt Helin of NBC Sports points out, commissioner Adam Silver and the league office have typically discouraged teams from making (or at least leaking) mid-June blockbuster trades that would upstage the NBA Finals, so even though there appears to be traction on the Durant front, that’s a factor to consider when projecting a timeline for an agreement.

The NBA Finals could end on Monday at the earliest, with a potential Game 6 scheduled for Thursday (June 19) and Game 7 to be played next Sunday (June 22), if necessary.

Latest On Kevin Durant

June 12th, 2025 at 4:36pm CST by Rory Maher

Appearing on NBA Today on Thursday (Twitter video link), ESPN’s Shams Charania gave an update on his report that the Suns and Kevin Durant‘s business partner, Rich Kleiman, have been evaluating trade options ahead of this month’s draft.

“There is traction on Kevin Durant trade scenarios,” Charania said. “And there are some teams that are motivated to get a deal done sooner rather than later, and so we’ll see. Will something happen before the NBA Draft? Does this linger into June 25, June 26, closer to that draft period?

“But those are the five teams (Houston, Minnesota, New York, Miami and San Antonio) where the Suns are most focused at. There are some wild-card suitors as well. But what this could end up coming down to is, he’s on expiring deal. … Is this all going to be contingent on him accepting a long-term (extension)? (Or) will there be a team that simply swings for him?”

While his ESPN colleague Brian Windhorst said earlier on Thursday that he thinks Durant “definitely” has interest in joining the Knicks, multiple local reporters have stated the team doesn’t plan to pursue the two-time Finals MVP, perhaps ruling New York out as a potential suitor.

Although the “situation remains fluid,” there’s growing skepticism that the Spurs will acquire Durant, with “no clear traction” on a deal, league sources tell Grant Afseth of RG.org.

According to Afseth, league insiders have doubts about the fit of Durant, who turns in 37 years old in September, joining a young, up-and-coming team in San Antonio. Afseth suggests the Spurs may be reluctant to meet the Suns’ asking price for Durant.

Following up on a report from Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Afseth cites league sources who say the Sixers‘ discussions with the Spurs about moving up from No. 3 to No. 2 are believed to have been exploratory rather than serious.

“For now, it’s more due diligence than anything,” one source told RG.

As of now, the Spurs are still expected to keep the second pick and select Dylan Harper, Afseth reports.

While the Knicks or Spurs may not land Durant, the Heat are legitimately interested in the superstar forward, confirms Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. The big question, Winderman writes, is whether that interest is mutual.

As Winderman observes, the Heat and Suns discussed a trade involving Durant and Jimmy Butler prior to the February deadline. Butler ended up in Golden State, which first nearly acquired Durant before he essentially nixed the deal. Heat stars Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro are not expected to be available in any Durant trade talks, according to Winderman.

Fischer’s Latest: Celtics, Sixers, Hawks, Capela, Draft

June 12th, 2025 at 3:17pm CST by Rory Maher

While there was speculation around the combine that rival teams would likely seek some sort of assets from Boston along with Kristaps Porzingis ($30.7MM expiring contract) or Jrue Holiday ($104.4MM over the next three years), the Celtics have been operating as though they’re confident those former All-Stars will return positive value on the trade market, reports Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).

According to Fischer, the Celtics have given some teams the impression they aren’t in a rush to reduce their projected record-breaking luxury tax bill for 2025/26, and may do so in phases rather than all at once. That could include trading Porzingis for a smaller salary this offseason, and perhaps waiting for the trade deadline next February to make another cost-cutting move.

ESPN’s Shams Charania recently reported that the Celtics won’t be actively looking to move Jaylen Brown or Derrick White this offseason, but they don’t necessarily view either player as untouchable.

Fischer hears Boston would have to have to be blown away to part with White, pointing to Brooklyn’s return for Mikal Bridges as a point of comparison. He also states that Payton Pritchard should be in a similar category of “extremely hard-to-get,” with Boston looking to remain competitive next season despite losing Jayson Tatum to a torn Achilles.

Here’s more from Fischer’s latest rumor round-up:

Confirming a report from Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Fischer has also heard the Sixers have spoken to the Spurs about the possibility of moving up from No. 3 to No. 2 in the draft. Fischer also confirms that Philadelphia has zeroed in on four candidates for the third pick, though only two of those prospects — V.J. Edgecombe and Ace Bailey — are currently known. Moving back in the draft remains a possibility as well, Fischer adds.
After reporting that there hasn’t been much chatter about the Hawks combining their two first-round picks (Nos. 13 and 22) in an effort to move up in the draft, Fischer has subsequently heard otherwise from “various sources.” According to Fischer, rival teams believe Atlanta is focused on centers in the draft, with Clint Capela expected to walk in free agency.
There’s an expectation around the league that there could be a rush of trade activity late in the first round and early in the second as teams jockey for prospects, Fischer writes. As Fischer explains, several players projected to be selected in that range wound up returning to college due to multi-million dollar NIL deals, leaving the latter portion of the second round, in particular, somewhat lacking in young talent compared to previous drafts.

Draft Notes: Player Comps, Fit/Value, Guide, Withdrawals

June 12th, 2025 at 12:07pm CST by Rory Maher

In a story for ESPN.com, Jeremy Woo lists both the high- and low-end comparisons for each player mocked by ESPN to go in the top 15 of the 2025 draft, which will begin on June 25. Woo writes that the likely outcome for the comparisons typically falls somewhere in the middle.

For consensus top prospect Cooper Flagg, Woo says Jayson Tatum with more defense would be a best-case outcome, with his low-end comp being Andre Iguodala with more offense. How about Dylan Harper, widely viewed as the second-best player in the class? According to Woo, Harper has a chance to become a Jalen Brunson-type player with more size, while a career like D’Angelo Russell‘s may be his floor.

As the draft gets closer to the back end of the lottery, there’s a wider range of outcomes. For instance, if Collin Murray-Boyles improves his jump shot, Woo thinks he could develop into a player like Al Horford. But if he doesn’t, he might just be a frontcourt depth option with solid defense, similar to Xavier Tillman.

Derik Queen (Alperen Sengun/Sandro Mamukelashvili), Joan Beringer (Clint Capela/Jaxson Hayes) and Noa Essengue (Pascal Siakam/Jarred Vanderbilt) are among the prospects mentioned in the teens.

Here are a few more notes on the upcoming draft:

ESPN’s latest mock draft focuses on the first round, with Jonathan Givony selecting a player who fills each team’s biggest need, while Woo chooses the prospects who offer the best value. While there’s a decent amount of overlap between the fit and value picks, there are also some major differences, starting at No. 2, where Givony views Kon Knueppel as the best fit for the Spurs (Harper is the best available).
Sam Vecenie of The Athletic recently released his comprehensive draft guide, featuring in-depth scouting reports on 75 players and ranking his top 100 prospects. Vecenie is extremely bullish on Flagg, believing him to be the second-best prospect in the past decade, only behind Victor Wembanyama, and is also high on Harper. However, he’s not as optimistic about the rest of the draft, with those two in separate tiers of their own. Notably, Vecenie is much lower on Oklahoma’s Jeremiah Fears (No. 18 vs. No. 7) than ESPN. The same is true of BYU’s Egor Demin (No. 25 vs. No. 11). By contrast, he’s much higher on Cedric Coward (No. 10 vs No. 29) and Noah Penda (No. 15 vs. No. 28) than ESPN’s experts. The guide is well worth checking out in full if you subscribe to The Athletic.
A pair of international prospects are withdrawing from the draft, according to Givony of ESPN and Jon Chepkevich of DraftExpress (Twitter links). Croatian forward/center Michael Ruzic, the 44th-ranked prospect on ESPN’s big board, has withdrawn from consideration, agents Bill Duffy and Sasa Zagorac tell Givony. Meanwhile, Bassala Bagayoko, a 6’9″ big man from Mali, will return to Spanish club Bilbao for the 2025/26 season, Chekpkevich reports. June 15 is the final deadline for early entrants to withdraw from the draft.

Trade Rumors: Celtics, Durant, Knicks, Pelicans, Spurs, Magic

June 12th, 2025 at 11:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics won’t be actively looking to move Jaylen Brown or Derrick White this offseason, but they also don’t necessarily view either player as untouchable, ESPN’s Shams Charania said on Wednesday during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show (YouTube link).

“The primary focus, from my understanding, with the Celtics’ offseason has been Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, (and) Sam Hauser, their trade markets,” Charania said. “Now, are teams making big offers and calling about Jaylen Brown and Derrick White? 100 percent. The Celtics prefer not to trade them, from my understanding. But if they get a big offer, they have to look at everything.”

Asked by McAfee if it’s accurate to say that everyone except Jayson Tatum, who will spent most or all of the 2025/26 season recovering from an Achilles tear, is theoretically in play, Charania replied, “Essentially.”

As has been reported repeatedly since Boston was eliminated from the playoffs last month, the club will be looking to reduce its luxury tax bill and get below the second tax apron in 2025/26, since Tatum’s injury figures to significantly reduce the odds of the Celtics seriously contending for another title next season.

Here are a few more trade-related rumors from around the NBA:

Brian Windhorst said during a Thursday appearance on ESPN’s Get Up (YouTube link) that he thinks Kevin Durant “definitely” has interest in the Knicks as a potential landing spot. However, after Stefan Bondy of The New York Post reported on Wednesday that the Knicks aren’t expected to pursue Durant, Steve Popper of Newsday has echoed that report, citing a league source who says New York isn’t interested in making a deal for the star forward.
Within his latest mock draft, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports says league sources continue to mention the Pelicans as a team with interest in moving up in the draft. According to O’Connor, multiple front office executives believe New Orleans, which controls the No. 7 overall pick, has interest in Rutgers’ Ace Bailey, who could be picked as early as No. 3, so Yahoo’s latest mock include a hypothetical trade between the Pelicans and Sixers.
The latest mock draft from Sam Vecenie of The Athletic also includes some sourced information related to potential trade scenarios. According to Vecenie, league sources believe the Spurs could move their No. 14 overall pick if a preferred target isn’t on the board and think the Magic will explore using at least one of their two first-rounders in a trade for offensive help.

Sixers Have Talked To Spurs About No. 2 Pick

June 12th, 2025 at 10:04am CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have engaged in discussions with the Spurs about the possibility of moving up in the draft from No. 3 to No. 2, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

With Cooper Flagg viewed as a lock to be the first player drafted on June 25, Rutgers point guard Dylan Harper is widely considered the second-best prospect in this year’s class, making him the heavy favorite to be the No. 2 pick. However, it’s unclear how enthusiastic San Antonio is about the idea of adding Harper to a backcourt that already features former All-Star De’Aaron Fox and reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle.

The Sixers have no shortage of talent at guard either, with Tyrese Maxey locked up to a long-term deal and Jared McCain making a strong first impression last season before a knee injury prematurely ended his rookie year. But Maxey and McCain are more reliable outside shooters than Fox and Castle, which should make them better suited to operate alongside another ball-handler.

If the Sixers do end up staying at No. 3, they’re zeroing in on four potential candidates for that pick, according to Scotto. A Wednesday report indicated that guard V.J. Edgecombe has made a strong case for consideration at No. 3, while forward Ace Bailey is also scheduled to make a pre-draft visit to Philadelphia for a private workout, so it seems safe to assume those are two of the four prospects in the mix.

A trade down has also been rumored as an option for the 76ers, though the team reportedly wants to add young talent to its roster and therefore isn’t looking to trade out of the first round entirely.

In addition to the No. 3 overall pick, Philadelphia holds the No. 35 selection in 2025. The club has traded away its own 2026 and 2028 first-rounders, but holds other future draft assets it could dangle in an effort to move up to No. 2, including the Clippers’ 2028 first-round pick, swap rights with the Clippers in 2029, their own first-rounders in 2030 and 2032, and an excess of second-rounders.

Suns, Durant Sifting Through Trade Scenarios

June 11th, 2025 at 12:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns and Kevin Durant‘s business partner, Boardroom CEO Rich Kleiman, have met multiple times over the past week and are sifting through trade scenarios, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports.

The Rockets, Spurs, Heat, Timberwolves and Knicks are among the teams that have expressed interest in trading for the 15-time All-Star forward.

Several other suitors beyond those five teams have made inquiries on Durant in the past seven-to-10 days, Charania notes. Talks are expected to escalate before the draft, which takes place in two weeks.

After a colossally disappointing season in which the Suns didn’t make the playoffs, there has been an expectation that Durant will be moved. The Suns engaged in trade talks involving Durant prior to February’s deadline and nearly traded him to Golden State, which seemingly caught Durant by surprise and was something he didn’t want at the time.

Matching salaries could be a challenge for some teams and draft capital could be key for the Suns, who desperately need to replenish their draft stock. The latter issue makes it preferable for a Durant deal to be in place over the next two weeks.

Durant has a $54.7MM salary next season, the last year of his current contract, and his desire for an extension could prove to be a critical factor in where he lands, says Charania.

Once he is traded, Durant will be eligible to sign a two-year contract extension on July 6 worth as much as $112MM. After a six-month waiting period, he could instead sign a two-year extension worth up to $124MM.

Trade Rumors: Giannis, Durant, Spurs, Garland

June 10th, 2025 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

The trade market for Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to be nonexistent, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on Tuesday during an appearance on Get Up (YouTube link). As Windhorst explained, despite rampant speculation about the possibility of the two-time MVP being traded this offseason, there has still been no indication that either Antetokounmpo or the Bucks are preparing for that scenario.

“Giannis Antetokounmpo has gone overseas to travel with his family. He has made no trade request to the Bucks. He has made no trade hint to the Bucks,” Windhorst said. “The Bucks are proceeding with their offseason as if Giannis is going to be with them, and there’s no significant trade talks right now. The plan is for Giannis Antetokounmpo to be a Buck.

“Now, he can change all that with a simple request, but that request has not happened and it’s not clear it’s going to happen anytime soon.”

Windhorst’s reporting lines up with what we’ve heard recently from Jake Fischer of The Stein Line and Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Both Fischer and Lewis indicated there’s increased skepticism among league sources that Antetokounmpo will end up on the trade block in the coming weeks.

It’s still not a sure thing that Antetokounmpo will open next season in Milwaukee, since trade requests often don’t come this early in the offseason. When Giannis’ current teammate Damian Lillard asked out of Portland in 2023, for example, it happened on July 1.

Still, I wouldn’t necessarily expect Antetokounmpo to wait that long to make a final decision — the further we get into June without a trade request, the better the Bucks have to feel about the odds of it not happening at all this summer.

Here are a few more trade-related notes and rumors from around the NBA:

During that same Get Up appearance (YouTube link), Windhorst confirmed that a Kevin Durant trade is far more likely to happen this offseason than a deal involving Antetokounmpo. He added that the Knicks are among a “handful” of teams expected to talk to the Suns about Durant, but cautioned that salary-matching and tax-apron rules will make it difficult for them to acquire Durant without including Karl-Anthony Towns. Reporting out of Phoenix last week suggested the Suns aren’t enthusiastic about trading for Towns.
Within an in-depth article exploring the Spurs‘ options with the No. 2 overall pick and considering whether it makes sense to add Dylan Harper to a backcourt that already features De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle, Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports cites sources who say San Antonio has explored the idea of packaging its second lottery pick (No. 14) with a player to upgrade its roster.
With Darius Garland trade rumors percolating, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required) evaluates what a deal involving the point guard might look like for the Cavaliers, discussing three separate hypothetical trades in which Cleveland acquires Jalen Suggs and Tristan Da Silva (from Orlando), Jaden McDaniels, Donte DiVincenzo, and Terrence Shannon (from Minnesota), or Trey Murphy, Kelly Olynyk, and Jose Alvarado (from New Orleans). Fedor also briefly discusses Sacramento’s reported interest in Garland, but suggests it’s not easy to find a match with the Kings.