Kevin Durant is hoping to finish this season with former Nets teammate Kyrie Irving after both were traded from Brooklyn … as he prepares to make his Suns debut Wednesday night after recovering from an injury on the knee.
Kevin Durant once again opened up about his relationship with Kyrie Irving after the pair were traded by the Brooklyn Nets in January, revealing he wanted to stay in New York until the end of the season and “see where we can go.” star point guard.
Talking about ETCs with Kevin Durant podcast, the newest member of the Phoenix Suns described himself and Irving as “separate entities” who each have to determine what’s best for their own separate careers after three and a half seasons in America’s biggest city where they failed to win a title together NBA championship.
“We’re all moving around and doing the things we want to do for our careers,” Durant said. “I can’t blame anybody for doing that, even though it might have been against us as a team… I don’t want to act like I wasn’t upset that we didn’t finish the season because I love playing with [Irving].’
I wanted to see where we could go with it because we were both playing at a high level. What [Irving] what he was doing behind the scenes, what his contract negotiations were, I don’t even want to think about any of that. Whatever he does, he is.’
The 34-year-old forward added that he and Irving, who now compete in the Western Conference as former teammates, “haven’t talked, but eventually we will.”
Kevin Durant (L) revealed he wanted to finish this season in Brooklyn with Kyrie Irving (R)
Kyrie & ‘KD’ only played 74 games together in their three and a half seasons with the Nets
Durant is set to make his Suns debut Wednesday night in Charlotte, according to the team’s latest update on its newly acquired superstar.
The former Texas Longhorn hasn’t played a single league game since Jan. 8, when he sprained his MCL against the Miami Heat. This season, Durant is averaging 29.7 points in 36 minutes per game in 39 games played so far.
The two-time NBA champion and Irving, as well as former Nets guard James Harden, played just 17 games together before the latter was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers midway through last season for Ben Simmons.
When the trio originally joined forces two years ago, fans expected a new order in the league, as the Nets had established themselves as favorites to win it all for years to come.
Instead, however, juggling injuries, rumors and off-court controversy proved too much for all three All-Stars, as Irving was the first of the trio to leave Brooklyn for the Dallas Mavericks in a three-team trade after asking the Nets front office to settle.
He and Durant played in just 74 games together with the Nets during their three-and-a-half seasons in New York’s most populous borough.
Days after the former Boston Celtics guard was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers before the league’s Feb. 9 trade deadline, Durant was dealt to the Suns, along with TJ Warren, for a package that included power forwards Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and Jae Crowder and four unprotected. future first round picks.
The 2014 MVP’s trade request was his second in eight months, ending what will go down as one of the biggest failed experiments in Brooklyn basketball history.
Irving (C), Durant (R) and James Harden (L) all came to Brooklyn with the goal of winning an NBA title