NBA Rumors: The Phoenix Suns have an offseason of change in front of them; it will almost certainly begin with this one big move.
Even though there are 21 games remaining in the regular season, it does seem as if the sun is beginning to set on Phoenix's season. Now officially four games out of the 10th seed in the Western Conference, the playoff odds are certainly stacked against them. Not only would the Suns have to make up those four games, but they would also need to do so against the most difficult remaining schedule in the league.
At this point, it would be pretty surprising if the Suns made a run on the West standings between now and the end of the season. With how much the odds are stacked against the Suns, it would probably make much more sense for the front office to already be thinking about possible changes that could be awaiting the team during the offseason. In fact, that's something that may already be in the works.
According to a recent report, "real changes" are expected from the Suns this offseason. More specifically, according to ESPN's Shams Charania, those expected changes are almost certainly going to begin with one big move - trading Kevin Durant.
At this point, the fact that the Suns are "planning" to trade KD heading into the offseason could be considered the worst-kept secret across the NBA. Per Shams, there's an expectation that between 4-6 contending teams will express interest in trading for KD this summer.
What other changes could be on the horizon for the Phoenix Suns?
The idea is that a trade of KD could open a door to even more flexibility for the Suns as they look to retool around Devin Booker this summer. It certainly won't be an easy task to accomplish, but that has to be the hope for the Suns after back-to-back seasons of huge disappointments.
I would say the big question for the Suns is whether they're going to be able to get out from the final two seasons of Bradley Beal's contract. That could be the huge offseason-defining question for Phoenix. If they are able to trade Beal, that would unlock a whole different level of options for the team that they currently don't have at their disposal.
The bottom line is that as the Suns inch closer and closer to another disappointing end to their season, this front office may already be preparing for some huge changes. From the sound of it all, it will almost certainly begin with a trade of KD.