Report: Kevin Durant Not ‘Happy’ With Suns, Didn’t Talk To Frank Vogel For More Than A Month

According to Stephen A. Smith of ESPN, NBA legend Kevin Durant is not happy with the Phoenix Suns. 

Smith is reporting that Durant sticks to himself and didn’t speak with Frank Vogel for more than a month. 

The Suns fired Vogel after one season and hired Mike Budenholzer, who won the 2021 championship with the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Stephen A. Smith: "Here's where Mike Wilbon didn't go into the details that all of us covering the NBA are aware of: Kevin Durant in Phoenix is a problem. It is a problem. We don't see it because the stats are there… but they say Kevin Durant is never happy. They say he went… pic.twitter.com/p29Ad1ctwc

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 13, 2024

The Suns went 49-33 during the regular season but were swept in the first round of the 2024 playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

Durant averaged 27.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists this season while shooting 52.3% from the field, 41.3% from beyond the arc and 85.6% from the free-throw line. The two-time NBA champion will make $49.9 million next season.

According to NBA reporters Shams Charania and Doug Haller of The Athletic, Durant never felt comfortable with his role in the Suns’ offense.

“Meanwhile, Durant, among the best scorers in NBA history, was not always happy with how he was used,” Charania and Haller wrote. “Sources briefed on the matter told The Athletic that Durant never felt comfortable with his role in Phoenix’s offense alongside Devin Booker and Bradley Beal this season. Those sources said Durant had persistent issues with the offense, feeling that he was being relegated to the corner far too often and not having the proper designs to play to his strengths as the offense was built around pick-and-rolls.

“At the same time, some teammates and people close to the organization believed Durant needed to voice his concerns more adamantly and directly with Frank Vogel and his coaching staff.”

The Suns enter the offseason with $209 million in salary, the biggest payroll of any NBA team, and face a projected luxury tax penalty of $116 million.

Phoenix is not expected to trade Durant, Booker or Beal. 

Since leaving the Golden State Warriors, Durant has won only two playoff series. He’s been swept twice in the first round of the postseason.