Instead of agreeing to a one-year, $60 million extension before the regular season began, the Phoenix Suns and Kevin Durant are expected to work together on a bigger contract as he nears one year remaining on his current deal, according to team owner Mat Ishbia.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!When talking to ESPN, Ishbia spoke this week about expecting Durant to sign a contract extension next offseason and “retire as a Sun.”
“[Durant] loves being in Phoenix, we love having him,” Ishbia said. “He’s off to an amazing start this season – one of the MVP leaders – and we’re off to a very good start. We expect Kevin to sign an extension, be with us for the long term. We hope he finishes his career here in Phoenix.
“You can’t sign a two-year extension this last summer, you can’t do it based on the NBA rules. So we figured after the season we’ll talk about it, take care of it. Kevin wants to be here, we want Kevin here. There’s never been one grumbling of anything different.”
By moving past the one-year extension deadline, Durant and the Suns will look to agree on a two-year, $120 million maximum extension next summer instead. Durant’s current contract runs out after the 2025-26 season.
Before he sustained a calf strain and was ruled out indefinitely, the 18-year NBA veteran was playing exceptionally well, averaging 27.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. The Suns started the season 8-1 with Durant in the lineup before they lost five of their last six games since he was sidelined.
Currently, both Durant and Bradley Beal are dealing with left calf strains while Devin Booker has been trying to carry the workload until they both return. Playing 36.7 minutes per game, Booker is tallying 23.5 points, 6.5 assists and 3.7 rebounds.
The Suns’ “Big 3” all played in exactly half of last season before injuries crept in. Beal missed 29 games, Booker was sidelined for 14 games and missed just seven. This year, Durant has been out since Nov. 8 and Beal has been inactive for the past five, including tonight against the New York Knicks.
On a four-game losing streak, Phoenix will host Mikal Bridges and New York tonight at 8 p.m. MST.
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Reporter Alec Cipollini covers the Phoenix Mercury, Suns and ASU Athletics for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @AlecCipollini
