The Clippers become a big dark horse? US media recommends trading Durant for 5 and 1, reorganizing the Big Three to strive for the championship

Durant has recently become the focus of the free market. The Suns want to complete his deal before the draft, and the Rockets are still the biggest favorite among them. However, there are also unexpected situations, such as the emergence of some dark horse teams, and the Clippers seem to be possible. US media Yahoo has provided them with a 5-for-1 trading plan. The specific trading plan is that the Clippers will send Norman Powell, Derek Jones Jr., Bogdan Bogdanovic, the second round pick from Memphis in 2026 and the first round in 2031, and Durant from the Suns.

From the perspective of trading chips, the Clippers did not give up too much, and still maintained the core combination of Harden + Leonard + Zubac. On this basis, there was another Durant, and the overall strength was still improved, but the Suns seemed not satisfied with the return.

Although the Suns want to actively send Durant away, they will not lower their offer, after all, the team still wants to remain competitive. In order to get Durant, he sent away multiple first-round picks, and it was impossible to exchange only one, unless the other teams were really unwilling to take action. In addition, the Suns also expressed their views to the outside world that they wanted to exchange Durant for an inside player. In contrast, the Clippers do not have an inside player as a bargaining chip, unless they can bring in a third-party team.

However, this plan is still very beneficial to the Clippers, at least the overall strength of the lineup has become better. Although Powell has performed well this season, his average performance in the playoffs has also caused his value to drop. Powell has one year left in contract, but the Clippers are not in a hurry to renew their contract, and they want to maintain the flexibility of the lineup. Jones Jr. performed well, and as a 3D player, he still deserves his contract; Bogdanovic lost his ability to shooter, and three-pointers in the playoffs are really inaccurate. If Durant is exchanged for such chips, the Clippers will never miss the opportunity. The boss Ballmer is willing to pay luxury taxes and wants to help the team win the first championship in team history. Next, it depends on whether the Clippers' management can bring surprises. Previously, media have revealed that the Clippers want to introduce older stars, which is to combine with Harden and Leonard to continue to attack the championship.