Wolves Reportedly 'Most Aggressive Team' for Kevin Durant Trade amid Warriors Buzz

The Minnesota Timberwolves were the "most aggressive team" to pursue a midseason trade for Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant, according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst.

Windhorst reported that Durant garnered "robust interest" with the Wolves, Miami Heat, New York Knicks, Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs all linked.

"If a team is going to pay a premium to acquire Durant—and at midseason the Suns were indeed looking for a premium, sources said, specifically packages that include current or former All-Stars, young players and/or first-round picks—then making sure he wouldn't simply be around for one season will be a priority," Windhorst wrote.

Phoenix can try to set that kind of price tag again, but Windhorst posited it may be a "challenge" to find a trade partner that Durant likes and has the financial room to acquire him.

The Suns are also a bit of a cautionary tale in terms of mortgaging your future for the 15-time All-Star. They gave up Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, four first-round picks and a 2028 first-round pick swap to acquire him ahead of the 2023 trade deadline.

After sacrificing all of those assets, Phoenix made the Western Conference semifinals in 2022-23, suffered a first-round sweep last year and then missing the postseason altogether this season.

There are some parallels between where the Suns were in 2022-23 and where the Timberwolves are now.

Team governors Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez aren't as new to the ownership scene as Mat Ishbia was at the 2023 trade deadline, but they only recently secured an agreement to take full control from Glen Taylor. As it was for Ishbia, a Durant trade would be a way for Lore and Rodriguez to send a message about their wider ambitions for the organization.

Minnesota has also tied its fate squarely to a young homegrown talent, Anthony Edwards, in the same way Phoenix had with Devin Booker when KD landed. Trading Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks made it abundantly clear Edwards is the No. 1 star in Minneapolis.

How the 2025 playoffs unfolded could be instructive in whether the sixth-seeded Timberwolves make another run at Durant. Should they beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round and spring an upset in the conference semifinals, the front office may feel the surefire Hall of Fame forward is the missing ingredient to get the team over the top.