Salivating Kevin Durant Spurs trade would unlock ultimate dream scenario

Rumors continue to swirl that the San Antonio Spurs will soon trade for Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant. Suns insider John Gambonaro has the Spurs as the frontrunners for KD and mentioned Devin Vassell, Harrison Barnes, and the 14th pick as the potential package.

Assuming that is ultimately the deal that lands KD, it would also come with an unforeseen benefit. According to Paul Garcia, the Spurs would be well over the salary cap in that scenario.

Fortunately, they would still have access to the mid-level exception (MLE) and bi-annual exceptions (BLE). That would still give them plenty of free agency options. That would allow the Spurs to build around their new core of De'Aaron Fox, Steph Castle, Durant, and Victor Wembanyama.

Will the Spurs be able to trade for Kevin Durant?

According to The Athletic's Kelly Iko, the Suns recently dropped their asking price for Durant. That report, in combination with Gambo's report, suggests that the Spurs could get him without having to give up more than one first-round pick. Those picks can be valuable.

Especially to a team that projects to be a contender, that would seemingly make the deal a no-brainer for the Spurs. However, San Antonio might be wise to include Keldon Johnson in the trade instead of Barnes. Moving Johnson would be a controversial move considering he is the longest-tenured Spur with six seasons under his belt.

That being said, San Antonio will be far more expensive in 2026-27 with likely Durant and Fox extensions, and Johnson will still be on the books for $17.5 million. Moving him now would give the team more flexibility down the road and give them more spacing this season around their best players.

After all, Barnes shot a blistering 43.3% on 4.4 threes this season, and even with Durant, they still wouldn't have as much spacing as they perhaps should. That doesn't appear likely, but the Spurs should at least insist upon including Malaki Branham in the potential deal. Doing so would free up $4.9 million in salary as well as a roster spot that they can use on a player that has more of a chance to contribute next season.

The Spurs trading for Kevin Durant may be the beginning

If the Spurs are able to land Durant for the cost of Barnes, Vassell, and the 14th pick, then that would obviously be a huge win. Durant has a strong claim to being one of the best all-around shooters, with him shooting a blistering 38.8% from three and a staggering 53.1% on mid-range jumpers.

A projected starting lineup of Fox, Harper, Castle, Durant, and Wembanyama would have plenty of talent. Even so, they would be able to bolster their bench by using the MLE and BLE.

In this scenario, they could sign a backup center such as Brook Lopez or Luke Kornett and bring in another shooter such as Jake LaRavia. They could perhaps even use non-bird rights to bring back Chris Paul to be the team's backup point guard. With Harper potentially starting in this hypothetical, that would free up playing time behind Fox that Paul could fill.

A bench that includes Paul, Julian Champagnie, LaRavia, Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, and Lopez or Kornett would give them depth. That would complete an impressive roster upgrade with a new-look starting five that includes three All-Stars and two potential future stars.

All things considered, if the report about the potential trade package for Durant is true, he would well be worth it. The move would have little downside, with Durant still playing at an extremely high level and the Spurs having plenty of young talent to offset any potential drop-off.