Kevin Durant Rumors: Nets Star Has Been 'Less Than Enthralled' with Ben Simmons

The presence of Ben Simmons may not offer much comfort for Kevin Durant now that the Brooklyn Nets are pivoting to a post-Kyrie Irving future.

Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes reported Sunday the Nets are trading Irving to the Dallas Mavericks. Now that the eight-time All-Star is gone, the focus in Brooklyn is shifting toward Durant's future.

The New York Daily News' Kristian Winfield reported what might happen with Durant remains up in the air. Winfield added this potentially noteworthy assessment of Simmons:

"Ben Simmons has missed the last four games with left knee soreness, but sources familiar with Durant's thinking tell the Daily News the star forward has been less than enthralled with Simmons, who is averaging just 7.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and six assists per game on a max contract in Brooklyn."

Per Haynes, the Nets are getting Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and draft picks from Dallas in the Irving trade.

Under the circumstances, that's a good haul for Brooklyn, one that helps the franchise contend in the short term.

Having said that, whatever title window the Nets had this season is probably shut now, and getting back to the ceiling they had with Irving might require shipping Simmons elsewhere.

It's not even that the three-time All-Star hasn't improved as a scorer or shooter; he's no longer the same player he was at his peak with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Simmons is averaging 13.2 points per 100 possessions, well below the standard he set (22.5 points) in Philly, according to Basketball Reference. He hasn't been the elite defender who can guard almost any position on the floor, either. The 6'10" point guard has fallen from 31st in ESPN's defensive real plus-minus (plus-2.39) in 2020-21 to 67th (plus-2.26) so far in 2022-23.

In short, Simmons isn't performing at the level the Nets need, and his contract is becoming a bigger millstone on their payroll. He counts for $35.4 million this season and is owed another $78.2 million across the next two seasons.

Because of his deal, moving Simmons will be easier said than done and might require additional assets from Brooklyn's side. Nevertheless, he and the Nets would probably benefit from a change of scenery either before Thursday's trade deadline or in the offseason.