Is Kevin Durant’s latest attempt at winning as part of a Big 3 going to be worse than his last?
After a disappointing Nets run with Kyrie Irving and James Harden, Durant, 35, wanted out of Brooklyn and was traded to the Suns in February.
Phoenix, after a second-round playoff exit, acquired Bradley Beal from the Wizards to form a Big 3 with Durant and Devin Booker.
But Beal has played in just six games this year after missing the start of the season with a back issue and then suffering an ankle injury.
The Suns sit in 11th place in the Western Conference at 14-15 after Monday’s Christmas loss to the Mavericks, Phoenix’s third straight defeat and their ninth in 12 games.
The circumstances appear to be vexing the 35-year-old Durant, who now may be wondering if he’s in the right spot to win his first non-Warriors championship.
“You talk to people in Phoenix and around that organization, they can feel the frustration with Durant,” Adrian Wojnarowski reported during ESPN’s “NBA Countdown” before the Suns’ loss.
“Part of that, certainly, is the missed games for Brad Beal. This team was built around those three stars (Durant, Beal and Devin Booker). The underwhelming supporting cast that comes from those massive trades for Durant and Bradley Beal that really gutted the organization and left them having to sign a lot of minimum players to fill out the payroll, and then understanding that they lack the assets, the draft picks, the trade capital, to go out and really improve this team.
“This is something they’re going to have to manage in Phoenix with Kevin Durant. You’ve seen it before. And it reminds you, it’s a stark reminder of how short of a window [the Suns have,] and how this team has to win big, and they have to win big quickly, based on how it was constructed and having Kevin Durant still playing at an All-NBA level, and a healthy Kevin Durant. There’s a lot at stake for this organization. It’s got to change soon.”
Booker, the 27-year-old homegrown star, also seems to be running out of patience.
During Monday’s loss, the ESPN broadcast picked up Booker calling out teammate Chimezie Metu for turning the ball over on an attempted pass to Booker that was intercepted by Luka Doncic and taken the other way for an easy bucket.
Booker tried chasing Doncic down while Metu barely moved.
“Why aren’t you running back? You just turn the ball over and don’t run back?” Booker said to Metu, whom the Suns signed to a one-year contract in the offseason after he spent three years as a backup with the Kings.
Booker is in the final year of his contract, while Beal and Durant are signed through 2025-26.
The trio combined are making over $130 million this season alone.
