Kevin Durant joins Reed Sheppard, traded to Houston Rockets

Devin Booker Kevin Durant Reed Sheppard — Photos via Allan Henry-Imagn Images and Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Kevin Durant is leaving one former Kentucky star to play with another — this time in Houston. The Phoenix Suns have finalized a trade to send the two-time NBA Finals MVP and 15-time All-Star to the Rockets in exchange for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft and five second-round picks, a blockbuster deal on the day of Game 7 of the NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers.

Out with Devin Booker and in with Reed Sheppard.

ESPN’s Shams Charania broke the news Sunday afternoon, putting the No. 2 seed Rockets in position to win a championship in 2026 with Durant joining Alperen Sengun, Fred VanVleet, Amen Thompson, Steven Adams, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason — plus Sheppard, who is expected to play a larger role in year two with the franchise after being selected No. 3 overall in last year’s draft.

For the Suns, it pairs Booker with a 23-year-old rising star in Green, who averaged 21.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists in 2024-25. They also have three first-round picks and eight second-round picks to use in trades after a disappointing 36-46 campaign this past season, finishing 11th in the Western Conference with the highest payroll in NBA history.

ESPN reports that the Suns engaged in serious talks with the Rockets, Miami Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves this week while the Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers, LA Clippers and Denver Nuggets also emerged as wild-card teams in the push for KD. It ultimately came down to Houston and Miami before Phoenix pulled the trigger on the deal with the former — Charania adding that the Rockets “showed an unwillingness to part with young cornerstones such as Jabari Smith Jr. and Reed Sheppard,” certainly a good sign for the former Wildcat as he continues to find his footing in the league and an expanded role in H-Town.

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Durant, set to turn 37 in September, averaged 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 62 games this season with the Suns, extending his streak of 25 points on 50 percent shooting and 40 percent from three per year to three seasons, the longest in league history.

Sheppard averaged 4.4 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 12.6 minutes per game, shooting 35.1 percent from the field, 33.8 percent from three and 81.3 percent from the line.

You can’t ask for a better mentor for the former Wildcat, Houston bringing in one of the greatest scorers in the history of the sport to show him the ropes as a pro.