Suns Notes: Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Mike Budenholzer

April 2, 2025

Suns coach Mike Budenholzer confirmed on Tuesday that Kevin Durant has been diagnosed with a sprained left ankle and will miss at least a week, aligning with a report by ESPN’s Shams Charania. Durant will be sidelined for the team’s current three-game road trip.

“As of now, we don’t expect him to join us on the trip,” Budenholzer said, per ESPN.

The Suns began the trip with an ugly road loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday, marking Budenholzer’s return. Phoenix will continue the trip with games against the Boston Celtics on Friday and the New York Knicks on Sunday. After that, the Suns will have just four games remaining in the regular season, but Budenholzer expressed optimism about Durant’s potential return before the end of the season.

“We’re certainly hopeful,” Budenholzer said. “I think these first few days will be important, but we’re hopeful he’ll be back before the end of the season.”

The Suns’ ability to bring Durant back before the end of the regular season will largely depend on their standing in the Western Conference. Following Tuesday’s loss, Phoenix now sits at 35-41 and trails the No. 10 Sacramento Kings by 1.5 games in the postseason race.

Meanwhile, multiple rumors on Durant’s future with the Suns are starting to surface. In a feature on the Suns’ disappointing season, Logan Murdock of The Ringer reported that a potential trade for Durant this offseason is not guaranteed. League sources indicated that Durant is “open to a return” to Phoenix, even though many around the NBA expect him to be traded.
Suns star Devin Booker expressed hope that Durant’s time in Phoenix will continue. “Hell yeah, I want to play alongside him,” Booker told Murdock. “The team’s been in a tough situation. So, that’s the NBA today. I think K understands the business too, that when things aren’t going the right way, people are going to explore options. I don’t know how serious it actually was, but we moved past it. You see his morale, you see how he feels about the city.”
Murdock also reported a sideline argument between Durant and Budenholzer during a game against the Lakers last month, which stemmed from Durant urging his coach to simplify certain offensive concepts to better support the Suns’ younger players. Durant downplayed the confrontation in his post-game remarks.