Shams: Suns' Offer with Mikal Bridges for Nets' Kevin Durant Hasn't Picked Up Steam

The Phoenix Suns appear to be trailing in the race for Kevin Durant.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Monday that the Suns' offer of Mikal Bridges and a "handful" of future draft picks has "not picked up any steam" with around a month remaining before training camps open.

The Suns appear to be a distant contender for Durant, as the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat remain engaged in talks with the Brooklyn Nets.

In the days following Durant's June trade request, Phoenix appeared to be the favorite to land the 12-time All-Star. Armed with Bridges, Deandre Ayton, Cameron Johnson and several future first-round picks, the Suns seemingly had a palatable offer as well.

That all changed when Ayton signed an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers on July 14. While the Suns matched the four-year, $133 million offer to retain Ayton, that move took him out of any potential Durant trade offers. Ayton cannot be traded for a full year without his permission, and can't be traded until Jan. 15 at the earliest.

With no other realistic offers on the table—the Suns aren't trading Chris Paul or Devin Booker—Phoenix seemed to bow out of the race for the time being.

Charania's report only confirms what we all essentially knew as soon as Ayton signed that offer sheet from Indiana.