Kevin Durant and the Rockets may not reach a quick resolution on contract extension talks, as Houston isn’t planning on handing out max money to the veteran star. Tim MacMahon discussed the Rockets’ plans with Durant on the “Hoop Collective” podcast, and said that while Durant may not seek full max money, Houston does not on coming particularly close to a max offer — which would be two years, $122 million.
“The Rockets aren’t gonna go all-in, by all appearances and by what I’ve heard, they’re not going all-in on an extension for Kevin Durant,” MacMahon said. “Now, doesn’t mean it won’t happen, but there’ve been rumblings KD’s not gonna push for the full max. I don’t know that the Rockets are going to put anything on the table that’s close to the max. I think the Rockets are — like it’s not ideal — but I don’t think they’d panic if they go into the season with Kevin Durant just on the contract that he’s on, just on the expiring.”
The Rockets were aggressive in reshaping their team after a first-round loss to the Warriors, as they tried to add veteran pieces to better contend in the playoffs next year. The biggest of those moves was trading Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and this year’s first round pick to the Suns for Kevin Durant. Adding the future Hall of Famer gives them an elite scorer and proven commodity on the wing, and they’ve moved into fifth in the NBA title odds at FanDuel at +900 as a result of adding Durant (and Dorian Finney-Smith and Clint Capela).
Given Durant steered himself to Houston, most expected the two sides would agree to a contract extension to keep him in Houston beyond this season, but Durant may have to be willing to take less to be on a team that has legitimate title aspirations.
Houston has been as disciplined as any team in the league when it comes to contract offers under the new CBA, as they’ve done as well as anyone at keeping players on positive value deals. Even when they hand out big money, they do so on deals that are shorter in length, have a descending structure or have options or non-guaranteed years that take away their long-term risk. As such, it shouldn’t be a surprise that they’re not particularly interested in giving a 36-year-old Durant a deal that’s near his max.
Now, MacMahon’s quote doesn’t come with any figures attached, so what is deemed “close to the max” is up for interpretation. Do the Rockets consider two years, $100 million enough savings to be valuable, or will they be pushing for something closer to $40 million annually? That’s the most important question, and we’ll find out over the coming months just how far apart the two sides are on what constitutes a fair deal.
It would be stunning for the Rockets to make the trade they did and then let Durant hit the free agency market. Given Houston was one of just a few approved destinations by Durant after his trade request, they might feel confident they can get him to sign for a lower number because they’re one of the only teams he truly wants to be on.
