Kevin Durant is as dialed in on social media as any athlete.
He wasn’t going to let this ride.
The Houston Rockets All-Star and two-time NBA Finals MVP fired back at Mat Ishbia in reaction to the Suns team owner’s comments about the trade that brought him to Phoenix. He also took a jab at Suns forward Dillon Brooks.
“#blameKD even though KD stayed on top of his game at 36 and got u back this “culture” you love so much,” Durant tweeted on X. “Aye, Matthew acts like I got arrested for a DUI or sumn. Back to threads.”
Brooks was formally charged with driving under the influence last month stemming from his March 6 arrest in Scottsdale.
The Suns traded Durant to the Rockets before the 2025 draft and acquired Jalen Green, the 10th overall pick in the 2025 draft,
Khaman Maluach, and Brooks.
In a recent interview with CNBCSport, Ishbia revisited the blockbuster deal for Durant in February 2023 in which the Suns traded Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder and four first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Durant.
“I kind of just threw money at the problem,” Ishbia said. “Now I got personally involved with every decision from the 14th man on the roster to the first man on the roster.”
Matt Ishbia admits trading for Kevin Durant was a mistake:
— NBABase (@TheNBABase) October 17, 2026
"I kind of just threw money at the problem... Bringing in super talented players like Kevin Durant doesn't necessarily lead to championships."
(Via @CNBCSport) pic.twitter.com/8tKQosqtwx
Ishbia later said, “Bringing in super talented players like Kevin Durant doesn't necessarily lead to championships.”
Durant has felt like he was the scapegoat for Phoenix finishing 36-46 in his final season with the team in 2024-25 and expressed it after hitting a game-winning shot to defeat the Suns, 100-97, Jan. 5 in Houston.
“It feels good to play against a team that booted out of the building and scapegoat-ed you for all the problems that they had and it hurts because I put all my effort, love and care towards the Suns,” Durant said.
Ishbia addressed the Durant trade to Houston in an exclusive interview with The Arizona Republic after the Suns were eliminated from the 2026 playoffs.
#blameKD even though KD stayed on top of his game at 36 and got u back this “culture” you love so much. Aye, Matthew acts like I got arrested for a DUI or sumn. Back to threads 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/oy6PZrBC2n
— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) October 17, 2026
“We knew we had to do it, to make the trade,” Ishbia said. “We knew we were going to make the trade. What we had to do is make sure we got the right things that were aligned with our identity. We look at it, we got four guys. We got Dillon, Jalen, Khaman and Rasheer (Fleming) because we used those picks to get the 31st pick (in the second round). Those players, could they all start next year, could they start the year after? Those are all four great players. So we feel great about what we did.”
Ishbia added, “You look at it now, it turned out to be a great trade for us. Not everyone said that the day we did it, but it turned out to be a fantastic trade for us and a huge part of our resetting our identity with those guys and building for the future as well.”
Ishbia’s recent interview restoked a friction that’ll likely carry over into the regular season when the Suns and Rockets face each other.
Phoenix and Houston have three matchups, with the first being Nov. 7 at Mortgage Matchup Center.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Kevin Durant fires back at Suns owner for trade comments, jabs Brooks
