Kevin Durant Didn't Like 'Backdoor S--t' in Warriors-Suns Trade Talk But Considered It

Kevin Durant "really thought about" going to the Bay Area before blocking the Phoenix Suns' proposed trade with the Golden State Warriors last season, he told Sports Illustrated's Tim Capurso.

Durant confirmed in September he had put a stop to a potential Warriors trade before accepting a move to the Houston Rockets.

"And I love Steph. I love hooping with Steph," Durant told Capurso. "And I really thought about going back to the Warriors. But it was a certain part of me that just didn't like that this last little phase of my career was gonna be—where I was gonna play was gonna be—that these owners was just gonna work behind my back to make that decision for me. 

"I didn't like that part of it. And I felt like I worked my way up in this league and put a lot of sweat equity into my name and my game, or the respect or the brand that I've created. So you doing business behind my back, backdoor s--- like that— It just didn't sit right with me. So I just wanted to wash my hands of both of those teams, the Warriors and the Suns. Because I didn't like how they did business."

Durant went on to credit the Warriors with approaching him about the potential deal before attempting to finalize the trade.

"I do appreciate, actually, the Warriors coming to me before they actually made a move and asking me, 'Did I want to be a part of it?' But I just didn't like how they all formed," Durant told Capurso. "So, I just wanted to wash my hands with that and move on.

"Houston was the team that really respected me, respected what I bring to the table and wanted to make this work. So, I'm excited about it."

Durant had one year remaining on his previous contract at the time of the trade. He recently signed a two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets with a player option for 2027-28.

The Rockets star first provided his perspective on the nixed Warriors trade while speaking at CNBC's Game Plan Sports Business Summit in September.

He said he was "a little upset" when the Suns first started shopping him around February, and that he "heard Golden State was in the mix" around the Feb. 6 trade deadline (h/t the Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin).

Durant added that he and his agent, Rich Kleiman, were then able to block the proposed trade.

"That's when Rich came into play, and those relationships that we built around the league and also playing in Golden State helped," Durant said, per Rankin. "We were able to tell them kind of hold off on that."

Last week's release of Netflix's Starting 5 gave fans a glimpse at Durant's reaction even closer to learning about the proposed trade. After learning about the trade, Durant told the camera, "Ain't no f--king way they tryna do this s--t behind my back."

That clip might have been filmed shortly after Durant reacted to the Dallas Mavericks' shocking decision to trade Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers ahead of the deadline.

"Players are held to a different standard of loyalty and commitment to a program, but the organizations don't get held to that same standard from the outside," Durant said at the time about the Dončić trade (h/t Rankin).

Durant got a taste of the impact of those loyalty standards during Tuesday night's season opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team he left in free agency to sign with the Warriors in 2016. Fans booed Durant when he was introduced ahead of his Rockets debut.

Durant went on to contribute 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting from the field, although the Thunder ultimately claimed a 125-124 double-overtime win.

Later that night the Warriors, who ended up bringing in former Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler instead of Durant at last seasons' deadline, leaned on Butler's 16-for-16 performance from the foul line while opening the season with a 119-109 win over Dončić and the Lakers.