Kevin Durant may be the NBA’s next champion, ahead of both Stephen Curry and LeBron James according to ESPN insiders.
After another early postseason exit with Phoenix, Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets last week, joining a young, hungry core that already proved it can compete after going toe-to-toe with the Warriors in a seven-game series in the second round.
Now, with Durant in the mix, the Rockets are being taken seriously as contenders, and not just by fans.
ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Bobby Marks both agreed KD is in a stronger position to win than Curry or James heading into the 2025-26 season.
“Today, I gotta say Kevin Durant,” Windhorst said on Tuesday’s episode of Get Up. “Let’s revisit this in two weeks because the Lakers have some things on their roster that they can trade to upgrade this roster, which they intend to do.”
But Bobby Marks was more direct.
“I think it’s Kevin Durant because whenever you make a trade for a top-ten player, and Kevin Durant is still a top-ten player, you are essentially gutting your roster with players and draft picks,” Marks said. “And no offense to Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green and the tenth pick in the draft, you still have Fred VanVleet, who the likelihood is that they’re going to work out a new contract, Alperen Sengun, Jabari Smith. You still have the pieces there and you have all these draft picks to go out and do another move. So for me, I look at it (as) Kevin Durant in Houston.”
KD joins a rising cast featuring Sengun, Jabari Smith Jr., and Amen Thompson – who are all under 23 years old.
The team also extended VanVleet this week, so Houston’s blend of youth and experience is definitely promising. Even more so with KD in the mix.
