Kevin Durant Trade To Phoenix Suns Opens Things Up For Miami Heat, Eastern Conference

At one point this season, the Brooklyn Nets were considered one of the favorites to win the Eastern Conference.

In the past week, they lost their best two players and will look like a new team after the trade deadline. On Wednesday, the Nets reportedly agreed to trade All-Star Kevin Durant to the Phoenix Suns. It was just days after guard Kyrie Irving, a fellow All-Star, was traded to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Nets exchanged Durant for Suns players Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder and four first-round picks according to ESPN. The Miami Heat were among the teams interested in Durant when he first requested a trade last summer.

Durant again asked for a trade after Irving was moved, breaking up a team that was near the top of the standings. That changed when Durant sustained an injury against the Heat in early January, leaving the scoring load on Irving.

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Shandel Richardson covers the Miami Heat for Inside The Heat.

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