Thunder's disastrous Kevin Durant fate could hit the Rockets too

The Rockets don't want to get in the habit of repeating other teams' mistakes, but they face a daunting situation with Kevin Durant that the Thunder once did in 2016. Just as he did then, Durant could leave his team for nothing in free agency as early as next summer if the Rockets don't get a long-term commitment from him. Hopefully the same thing doesn't happen in Houston 11 years later.

Durant can hit free agency in one short year

During this offseason, the Rockets have made smart long-term commitments for their core young pieces but don't have Durant locked up beyond 2027. He's under contract for next season, but has a player option for the following season. Obviously, if he opts out of that in the summer of 2027, Durant could be an unrestricted free agent with his pick of teams around the league.

If the Rockets want to secure Durant on a longer contract, they will probably need to show him they are serious about their title hopes in the near future. Whether it's bringing in more established offensive help next to him or making a coaching change, Durant probably needs to see more from Houston before committing. At 37 years old, it's hard to blame him - KD only has a few limited years left as an All-Star, after all.

Losing Durant to free agency without any notable playoff success would be a huge blow for the Rockets. When they first traded for him, they were committing to building a title contender right away. And yet that dream still feels fairly far off a year after acquiring him.

The Rockets should have a more well-rounded team next season, but they are still behind the best taems in the West. And Durant will still have to do much of the heavy lifting as a scorer, even with the additions and returns of key veterans on the squad.

The Rockets have another way to avoid losing Durant in free agency

Houston is Durant's fifth different home in the NBA, meaning he's already left four franchises. For three of those teams, they got assets for losing Durant by executing smart trades. Even the Warriors, who lost Durant as a free agent in 2019, got D'Angelo Russell back in a sign-and-trade. Russell would eventually be flipped for Andrew Wiggins, who was later the second-best player on a championship team in 2022.

Only one team was completely screwed over when they lost Durant, and that was the Thunder. If the Rockets want to avoid that same fate, they might be wise to gauge Durant's trade value around the league this season. He's still good enough to warrant a considerable package from a contender needing more of a scoring punch. And the return could help the Rockets focus on a younger timeline instead.

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