Though he may be a full-blown superstar and one of the top 75 greatest NBA players to ever live, Boston Celtics fans still can’t seem to come to a consensus opinion on whether or not trading for Kevin Durant would be the right move for this franchise to make.
Ever since word broke that the wing wished to part ways with Brooklyn, the C’s have been found right smack dab in the middle of all the chatter that’s followed, as many consider them the franchise who could offer up the best package to acquire him.
Now, while there are many out there who are up to seeing the megastar taking his talents to eastern Massachusetts–apparently, this includes the Boston Celtics themselves (subscription required)–, others are completely opposed to the idea, as any such deal would require far too much being given up from the reigning Eastern Conference champions.
While we at HH have our own opinions about the matter, and, ultimately, side with this latter mindset, our very own sister site Hoops Habit just recently went about and compiled a list of 3 specific reasons why Brad Stevens and co. should try to execute a blockbuster for Durant.
With this, it sparked the desire for us at HH to push out yet another installment of one of our favorite series we call “Agree or Disagree”–not to be confused with “Pass or Pursue”–, where we discuss recently established concepts across the media landscape and state whether or not we see eye to eye.
So, without further adieu, let’s get started:
Boston Celtics argument No. 1) “Kevin Durant wants a coach he can trust”
Just recently, Kevin Durant reiterated his stance on wanting to be traded out of Brooklyn and essentially gave team owner Joe Tsai an ultimatum: either get rid of Steve Nash or get a deal done.
Right from the jump, it was apparent that the signing of the former Hall of Fame point guard to be this championship-favorite team’s head coach was quite controversial, and though initial reports suggested that the All-Star was a major advocate for the hire, recent comments by Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer indicate that this was never the case.
"“I think that the public and others took his close relationship with [Steve] Nash in Golden State and just assumed that that was the reason why Nash got hired,” Fischer said. “From my understanding, Sean Marks’ connections with Nash from their playing days and Marks believing that Nash could be the type of Hall-of-Fame former player figure that could really be the leader to keep this star-studded group together was the driving force behind that hire, and not Kevin Durant.”"
Now, with these new rumblings surfacing that KD is unhappy with the direction that Nash has taken the Nets, H.H.’s Loyal Ricks Jr believes that having a head man that he can trust is a major desire, and, to him, the Boston Celtics could be just the place to provide him with exactly this.
"Trust has been something that head coach Ime Ukoda earned from his players last season. Without it, the Celtics would not have made it to the NBA Finals, proving to the league that they were the best team in the Eastern Conference last season. Joining a team with positive momentum would be a dream for the twelve-time All-Star."
As many of you already know, Durant and Ime Udoka already have a developed relationship after having spent the 2020-21 season as members of the Nets (Udoka as an assistant coach and Durant, obviously, as a player).
During his first year with the C’s, the 45-year-old absolutely proved himself to be one heck of a head coach while also establishing a great relationship with his players along the way.
Ricks is absolutely right that Udoka has earned the trust of his squad with the excellent performance he had in year one, and without a doubt, Durant, or any player for that matter should covet such a leading man to run their ball club.
Having said that, to us, this is more of a reason describing why the wing would want to come here in the first place, not why the front office should want to go out and acquire him.
At the end of the day, all this really means is that Boston has the luxury of employing such a respected coach running the show while KD doesn’t.
Nothing more, nothing less and it’s definitely not a reason to make a trade for the high-priced star.