Nets To Hang On To Kevin Durant?

While the Nets are actively seeking trade partners for Kevin Durant, the possibility remains that he could return to Brooklyn.

Per Marc Stein of The Stein Line, “whispers have increasingly circulated in recent days” the Nets may opt to keep Durant if they don’t find a deal that they like. They are very clearly are seeking a massive haul in return — and as of now, those deals aren’t available.

Stein’s report is actually just one of several that suggests Durant may not be traded at all, despite the fact he requested one.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski recently suggested that Durant perhaps having a change of heart shouldn’t be ruled out. Even if not, a deal isn’t expected to come anytime soon.

“Brooklyn, they don’t have to take a deal that they don’t want to do. They don’t have to talk themselves into a deal,” Wojnarowski said. “At the same time, Kevin Durant, as he looks at the situation, could he look at it differently over time? That’s certainly a possibility.”

While the rumors are hot, league sources have told Hoops Wire the Nets are not close anything involving Durant.

“We have a pretty gigantic gulf between what the Nets’ value of Kevin Durant is and what the market is willing to pay,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on Get Up, via Real GM. “Again, this requires some nuance and I know that this potentially will be taken out of that context.

“Kevin Durant is obviously a very valuable player. Nobody doubts that this guy is still in his prime years as an MVP level candidate, who can completely swing a team from pretender to contender with his presence.

“However, the market does not want to pay a super premium price for him because if you trade away all of these top assets on your team to get him, he becomes less valuable to you. And that gulf is why we’re in a stalemate right now and could have one for a while.”