Kevin Durant delivered a decisive 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left, sealing the Houston Rockets’ 100-97 win over the Phoenix Suns and adding extra emotion against the team that moved Durant on in 2025.
The victory at Toyota Center also extended Houston’s record to 3-0 against Phoenix this season.
Durant, now 37, closed the night with 26 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. The forward struggled from long range for most of the game, missing nine of his first 10 attempts from beyond the arc, yet stayed confident enough to hit the winning 3-pointer in the final seconds.
Durant did not hide the extra edge he felt facing Phoenix, given how the partnership ended. Asked whether beating the Suns meant more, Durant said: "Most definitely. It was a place that I didn’t want to leave. It was my first timeI don’t want to sound too dramatic, but I willbeing kicked out of a place! It feels good to play against a team that booted you out of the building and scapegoated you for all the problems they had. And it hurt because I put all my effort and love and care towards the Suns and the Phoenix area and Arizona in general. But that’s just the business, that’s the name of the game. So, when you play against a former team, yeah, you’ve got a chip on your shoulder. "
Durant stressed there is still strong respect for those now wearing the Suns jersey, yet the competitive drive against a former employer remains sharp. "It’s nothing but love for the players, but I want to beat that team," Durant said. "I want to show them that I still got some juice in the tank. Even though I’m old, I still can play. I feel like every player has that mentality playing against their former team. I don’t think it’s malicious in any way towards them. But just as a competitor, you want to go out there and beat them. "
The game-winner added to Durant’s strong early scoring run with Houston. Durant has 771 points through 30 games with Houston, the most by any player aged 35 or older in their first 30 games with a new team. The only other player to reach at least 700 in that situation is Michael Jordan, who had 737 for the Washington Wizards.
Kevin Durant has 771 points through 30 career games with Houston, the most by any player age-35 or older through 30 career games with a new team. The only other player with at least 700: Michael Jordan, Was 737 pic.twitter.com/XSS22SixqYOptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) January 5, 2026
The context behind Durant’s feelings lies in the Phoenix spell that came before Houston. Durant joined the Suns in February 2023 after a trade from the Brooklyn Nets and stayed until July 2025. Durant made the All-Star Game in both full seasons with Phoenix but the team’s results fell short of expectations.
During 2023-24, the Suns exited in the first round of the playoffs, then missed the postseason entirely in the following campaign. His departure, completed in a seven-team trade, was described as acrimonious, leaving Durant disappointed after investing heavily in the Suns, the Phoenix community and the wider Arizona region.
Durant’s late 3-pointer against Phoenix underlined both a professional response and a personal statement. The forward accepted that this is part of the business side of the NBA, yet continues to play with a clear chip on the shoulder against the Suns, while helping Houston maintain strong form early in his time with the Rockets.
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