The NBA will not be the same when today’s generation of greats decides to hang up their jerseys and retire. It is an inevitable part of every player’s professional basketball career — one Kevin Durant had a chance to ponder on recently.
Durant is truly a rare breed. A 6-foot-11 forward with a 7-foot-5 wingspan, he handles the ball like a guard, has an elite mid-range and post-up game, can shoot the lights out from deep, and can virtually guard any position with his length and speed. He revolutionized the game, becoming one of this generation’s superstars and making a strong argument as an all-time great.
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However, longevity has always been the bane of many athletes. Nevertheless, Durant is looking to take a page out of the book of NBA legends like LeBron James, Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki.
“I [want to play] as long as I can,” Durant said at the CNBC x Boardroom’s GamePlan 2025 Summit. “I mean, I haven’t put a number on it. I obviously think about retirement every year and think about what it will be like. Who knows, man? Who knows?”
Why Durant keeps playing
Durant is 36 and has been in the league for 17 years. The Seattle SuperSonics, which later became the Oklahoma City Thunder, selected him as the second overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft. Since then, he has collected numerous awards and recognitions, establishing his name in the upper echelons of the league.
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Durant is a two-time NBA champion and two-time Finals MVP, a 15-time NBA All-Star, six-time All-NBA First Team member, an MVP and a Rookie of the Year. On top of that, he sits at the eighth spot in the top 10 all-time regular season scoring leaders with 30,571 points, one of the many reasons he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
If Durant were to call it a wrap on his career, he would certainly be considered an all-time great. But he chooses to put retirement in the back of his mind.
“I don’t even want to think about it right now, but when people ask me these questions every day, I can’t help myself but think about it,” he said. “I still enjoy going to the gym. I still enjoy that struggle of getting better every day and grinding as an NBA player. So hopefully it’s in my 40s, I can play until then.”
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Potential retirement in Houston?Â
In late June, the Phoenix Suns dealt Durant to the Houston Rockets, his fifth franchise, where he will play alongside Alperen Sengun, Fred VanVleet and Amen Thompson.
Although Durant expects to play until he’s in his 40s, NBA insiders like ESPN’s Shams Charania think he is eyeing retirement in a Rockets jersey.
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“The goal right now for Kevin Durant and the Rockets is for him to retire in Houston,” Charania said in June 2025 on ESPN’s First Take.
“They’re going to eventually this offseason discuss a contract extension, figure out where that lands…and Kevin Durant really views himself here. It’s a perfect fit in a lot of ways. We know, he’s a No.1 option, he can be a No. 1 option on any given night. The Rockets made this move, it’s a win-now trajectory type of move,” he added.
If he avoids major injuries, Durant will likely achieve his goal of playing until his 40s and do so, still, at a very elite level. And surely, by then, he will still be giving other NBA stars and teams huge problems on the court — and they will just have to deal with it.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 21, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.