{"id":99059,"date":"2025-06-14T21:44:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T21:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/99059\/"},"modified":"2025-06-14T21:44:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T21:44:12","slug":"raptors-rumors-insider-reveals-toronto-is-willing-to-gamble-on-kevin-durant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/99059\/","title":{"rendered":"Raptors rumors: Insider reveals Toronto is willing to \u2018gamble\u2019 on Kevin Durant"},"content":{"rendered":"

The post Raptors rumors: Insider reveals Toronto is willing to \u2018gamble\u2019 on Kevin Durant<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Toronto Raptors<\/a> are reportedly emerging as a potential wild card in the Kevin Durant<\/a> trade sweepstakes. According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Raptors are among the teams prepared to take a gamble<\/a> on the 15-time All-Star despite his expiring contract and uncertain long-term commitment.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Stein made the revelation on the latest episode of the All-NBA Podcast, noting the growing activity surrounding Durant\u2019s trade market as the NBA Finals continue.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are teams out there saying you know what\u2026 we know he\u2019s only under contract for one more year at about $55 million, we\u2019re willing to gamble on him, and the Toronto Raptors are one of those teams,\u201d Stein said.<\/p>\n

Durant, 36, is entering the final guaranteed year of his deal with the Phoenix Suns<\/a> for the 2025\u201326 season. Trade speculation surrounding the veteran forward has steadily intensified<\/a> since the February deadline, when several teams reportedly made inquiries. With the Suns finishing the 2024\u201325 season at 36-46 and missing the postseason, the franchise is expected to explore major changes under new head coach Jordan Ott<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Stein pointed to Toronto\u2019s previous high-risk, high-reward move in 2018 as a precedent for its current approach.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Toronto Raptors have already done this. They\u2019ve already gambled on a Hall of Fame bound forward that had one year left on his deal\u2026 traded for Kawhi Leonard, won a championship, and immediately lost Kawhi Leonard,\u201d Stein said.<\/p>\n

Raptors\u2019 2018-19 Kawhi Leonard gamble cited as blueprint for potential Kevin Durant pursuit\"Joe<\/p>\n

Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Leonard, acquired from the San Antonio Spurs, delivered the Raptors their first NBA championship<\/a> before leaving in free agency that summer. While the move came with risk, it remains one of the most successful trades in franchise history and could serve as a model for the organization\u2019s pursuit of Durant.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

\u201cWill the Raptors or someone else be willing to make that same gamble on Kevin Durant now,\u201d Stein continued, \u201cand give the Suns an offer better than the options they would have to trade him to the teams that are presumed to be Kevin Durant\u2019s preferred destinations? Your San Antonio\u2019s and your Houston\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Toronto already made a bold move earlier this year by acquiring former All-Star forward Brandon Ingram from the New Orleans Pelicans<\/a> at the trade deadline. Pairing Durant with Ingram and rising star Scottie Barnes would significantly raise the team\u2019s ceiling heading into the 2025\u201326 campaign. The Raptors also hold the No. 9 overall pick in the upcoming 2025 NBA Draft<\/a>, giving them another valuable asset to either build with or potentially include in trade discussions.<\/p>\n

Durant averaged 26.6 points, six rebounds, and 4.2 assists on 52.7% shooting from the field and 43% from three-point range this past season. He remains one of the league\u2019s most efficient scorers, but with no long-term commitment in place, any team considering a trade must weigh the potential short-term gain against the risk of a brief tenure.<\/p>\n

As speculation builds, the Raptors appear willing to embrace that risk. If history is any guide, Toronto could once again look to capitalize on a one-year window \u2014 and potentially reshape the Eastern Conference in the process.<\/p>\n

Related: Kon Knueppel turns heads with shocking NBA draft testing results<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Scottie Barnes responds to P.K. Subban\u2019s bold NBA, NHL claim<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The post Raptors rumors: Insider reveals Toronto is willing to \u2018gamble\u2019 on Kevin Durant appeared first on ClutchPoints.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":99060,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3770],"tags":[7,4441,292,529,938,2546,6,470,472,681,969,474,1261,680,476,3820],"class_list":{"0":"post-99059","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-raptors","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-brandon-ingram","10":"tag-houston","11":"tag-kawhi-leonard","12":"tag-kevin-durant","13":"tag-marc-stein","14":"tag-nba","15":"tag-new-orleans-pelicans","16":"tag-phoenix-suns","17":"tag-raptors","18":"tag-san-antonio","19":"tag-san-antonio-spurs","20":"tag-scottie-barnes","21":"tag-toronto","22":"tag-toronto-raptors","23":"tag-torontoraptors"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/114683908227395910","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99059","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99059\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99060"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}