The Houston Rockets acquired NBA legend Kevin Durant from the Phoenix Suns on July 6.
It was a seven-team trade involving the Rockets, Suns, Brooklyn Nets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers.
Durant will wear No. 7 with the Rockets. He wore that number during his stint with the Nets.
According to Chris Baldwin of PaperCity, Durant had thumb surgery recently. However, the surgery is considered minor.
“New Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant underwent thumb surgery recently, NBA sources tell PaperCity,” Baldwin wrote. “The very quiet surgery — which no outlet has reported on till now — is considered minor and a source tells PaperCity that Rockets leadership ‘did not give it a second thought’ after the team’s doctors looked at x-rays of the thumb.
“The thumb injury and quiet offseason surgery raised no concerns to the Rockets’ decision makers, according to a source with knowledge of their thinking.”
Durant appeared in 62 games for the Suns last season. The NBA icon averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists while shooting 52.7% from the floor, 43.0% from 3 and 83.9% from the free-throw line.
A 15-time All-Star, Durant has played for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Warriors, Nets and Suns. He has career averages of 27.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 1,123 NBA games.
Durant won back-to-back championships and Finals MVPs in 2017 and 2018 with the Warriors. He won the 2014 MVP Award and four scoring titles with the Thunder.
A top 75 player of all time, Durant can extend with Houston for up to two years, $122.1 million. Rockets head coach Ime Udoka was an assistant coach on the Nets in 2020-21 when Durant was there. Udoka played a strong role in the Rockets trading for Durant.
The eighth leading scorer in NBA history, Durant hasn’t had his introductory press conference with the Rockets yet, but he’s “incredibly excited” about playing for Houston, according to NBA insiders Kelly Iko and Sam Amick of The Athletic.
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