Suns star Kevin Durant is eligible for a contract extension, but not surprisingly, he could wait for a larger deal, per NBA front office insider Bobby Marks of ESPN.
“Durant has been eligible to sign a one-year, $59.5 million extension since early July,” Marks wrote. “The strong likelihood is Durant waiting until the 2025 offseason, when he would be eligible to sign a two-year, $123.8 million extension in Phoenix, sources told ESPN. By waiting, Durant would earn an extra $64.3 million.”
Durant and the Suns are looking to bounce back from a disappointing season in which they were swept in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs by the Timberwolves. They then replaced coach Frank Vogel with Mike Budenholzer — their third coach in three years.
Durant recently suggested he is thinking about retirement. Maybe not immediately, but perhaps soon.
He averaged 27.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.2 blocks in 2023-24 while shooting 52.3% from the field, 41.3% from beyond the arc and 85.6% from the free-throw line. The two-time NBA champion will make $49.9 million this season.
Durant, who helped Team USA win the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, told NBA reporter Marc J. Spears of Andscape that he’s looking forward to next season.
“I’m excited about the season, Bud, his staff, our team,” Durant told Andscape. “We’re getting another year to just get comfortable with one another. Also, we have been underestimated so far this summer since the season ended with a sweep. We deserve to be underestimated as a team, but I’d like that we’ll be able to play a more chip on our shoulders coming in here next [season] to prove some people different.”
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