James Jones’ $132M Decision: Impact on Kevin Durant’s Legacy, Head Coach Fired, Yet A Pacers’ Blessing In Disguise

Ever since Kevin Durant moved out of the Bay Area, he has had a difficult time on the court. And it grew multifold in recent times after he joined hands with the Phoenix Suns. This postseason, after a hot and cold run in the regular season, the Wolves swept them with a 4-0 record in the first round. Looking back at the Suns’ decisions in the last two years, a popular podcast pointed out that after James Jones decided to trade out DeAndre Ayton “very little has gone right”.

Burns and Gambo (B&G), the popular Arizona podcasters had an interesting take on how the Indiana Pacers are thankful for matching Ayton’s offer sheet. The 25-year-old center, DeAndre Ayton, moved out of the Suns in the 2023 off-season with a trade exchange linked with the Milwaukee Bucks and Portland Trail Blazers. Ayton shifted to the Blazers and received Jusuf Nurkić instead. The podcasters even highlighted how the Suns were quick to match the offer.

Looking back, this could be one blunder the Suns could have committed while having a superstar, Kevin Durant, by their side. B&G also revealed that, two years ago, the former coach Monty Williams stressed the Suns’ GM, James Jones to trade Ayton for the Pacers’ young center Myles Turner. The podcasters stated, “He’s shooting 45.7% from 3-point range. The Suns didn’t want him. They didn’t want Myles Turner. And here’s a kid that kind of gives you what you’re looking for in a big man. Allow Booker, Beal, and Durant the room to drive inside because you’ve got a setter that’s pulling everyone way away from the basket because he’s a legitimate three-point threat”. 

Jones was adamant not to trade Ayton away but eventually traded him only a year after a $132 million extension. Now, the Suns are stuck with Nurkic, who is also a dominant center but has limited skills in his arsenal. On the other side, Turner, being a center, has had a major impact on the three-point line. In a playoff game against the Knicks, he converted 7-9 3Ps! Amid all the chaos in the Suns dressing room, one name and question comes to mind.

Can Kevin Durant’s legacy be saved?

As of now, the legacy of the 2x NBA Champ is a big question mark. Apart from the 0-4 sweep in the first-round series, Kevin Durant had Anthony Edwards rub salt in his wounds. The rising superstar had plenty of one-on-one battles with the Slim Reaper, his childhood idol, and ended up winning most of them. Moreover, a video clip of Ant-Man trash-talking KD after sinking a three-pointer over him went viral in the NBA world.

While KD himself can seek revenge for a one-on-one battle, he can’t do much about organizational issues. The team hired coach Frank Vogel for the 2023-24 after dismissing Monty Williams. Now, the team has again gone back to square one as they dismissed Vogel 11 days after the embarrassing series loss.

Moreover, a recent report revealed that James Jones’ job as the Suns’ General Manager has no threat as he would continue in the next season as well. Amid these concerns in the front office, the question of saving KD’s legacy seems irrelevant. The Suns should definitely make a change in their roster that can enable the Big 3 to work in tandem and get a ring.

Will the Suns make wiser decisions in the off-season? Let us know in the comments.