Kevin Durant's inner circle rips 'shameless' Stephen A. Smith & Adrian Wojnarowski over KD-Rockets rumors  

When NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported about Houston's interest in acquiring Kevin Durant, hence their acquisition of picks from the Nets, there was a lot of discussion regarding his future with the team. However, "The ETCs" podcast host Eddie Gonzalez has addressed that Durant's name being included in trade discussions is nothing more than an engagement tactic.

Interestingly, NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith added more engine to the conversations surrounding the trade scenario when he reported about the Suns' front office looking to move the star forward as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Kevin Durant has not responded to any of the reports made.

With how social media has been highly utilized to disseminate breaking news, X user abdz (@abdz24) asked Gonzalez about a possible reason why Kevin Durant hasn't come out to address the rumors. Known to host the same podcast platform as the Suns star, Gonzalez argued that doing such a thing would only result in more attention from the media.

"Why should he? Doesn't that give them more fodder? Also ...," Gonzalez posted.

Given the shortcomings of Phoenix in this year's NBA Playoffs, Suns owner Mat Ishbia is still confident that the big three lineup of Durant, Booker, and Beal are enough to contend for a championship.

However, some would argue that a couple of pieces need to be moved in order to maximize the potential of the roster.

As of now, it remains to be seen what befalls Kevin Durant's future with the Phoenix Suns.

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Suns owner remains confident in title hopes for Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Devin Booker core

Phoenix Suns' owner Matt Ishbia

Regardless of what some narratives are saying about the capability of the Suns' big three to compete for a championship, Mat Ishbia remains firm in his belief that they have enough to contend for the title. He made his comments during the team's press conference after being swept in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

"Ask the other 29 GMs — 26 of them would trade their whole team for our whole team and our draft picks and everything as is," Ishbia said. "The house is not on fire. We're in great position. It's not hard to fix. It's not like we're like, 'Hey, we don't have enough talent to win a championship. We have enough talent to win a championship."

As currently constructed, the Suns are short of a proper depth to go head-to-head with the elites of the league come playoff time. The offensive juggernaut that is Durant, Booker, and Beal will not be enough the second time around to get past the Western Conference and challenge the remaining team for the chip.

However, Ishbia's comments are evident in the vision he has for this team to finally get over the hump. Be that as it may, it remains to be seen if the team's front office will make any substantial moves in the coming days.