Spurs' Victor Wembanyama Says He's a Kevin Durant Fan Amid Suns, NBA Trade Rumors
Victor Wembanyama might have been happy to read the report from ESPN's Shams Charania that listed the San Antonio Spurs as one of Kevin Durant's preferred trade destinations.
Wembanyama was asked if he is a big fan of Durant while filming a live episode of Kevin Hart's Cold as Balls podcast during Saturday's Fanatics Fest in New York City (h/t The Athletic's Larry Holder.)
The Spurs star replied, "That's right."
According to Charania, the Phoenix Suns plan on prioritizing maximizing their trade return when negotiating with between six and eight teams who are "seriously interested" in Durant.
The Suns originally acquired Durant from the Brooklyn Nets in 2023 in exchange for a trade package of Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder and four unprotected first rounders. Durant is currently signed for one more season at a cap hit of $54.7 million.
Phoenix's focus on finding the best possible return for moving on from Durant was echoed in a recent report by NBA insider Marc Stein.
Stein reported that the Suns "are open to a mutually beneficial trade to the Spurs, Rockets or Heat if they end up liking the return, but it appears that Phoenix is prepared to make the best deal it can."
The Athletic's Sam Amick meanwhile said in a Wednesday appearance on The Carmichael Dave Show that he had been told the Spurs are "not going to go all in to get Durant."
Amick noted that the Spurs traded for De'Aaron Fox last season without giving up key young players or prospects.
"We just saw how the Spurs had zero intention or willingness to give up anything on their roster, let alone anybody in their young core. I don't know that that has changed all that much," Amick said.
Wembanyama was seen talking to Durant on the court after Team USA defeated Team France for a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
When asked about that conversation in a French language interview with M6 Info after the Olympics, Wembanyama described Durant as his "favorite childhood player" (h/t ClutchPoints.)
"I made it clear that I wanted to learn from him, perhaps only steal one or two of his secret techniques," Wembanyama joked at the time.
Bringing Durant to San Antonio could allow Wembanyama to get to work on learning those techniques. If the cost of a potential trade is a prized young player like Stephon Castle, however, it sounds like the Spurs might not be motivated enough to win a potential bidding war for the 15-time All-Star's services.
