On February 16, 2023, Mat Ishbia stood alongside Kevin Durant in Phoenix and made his intentions clear. The new Suns owner was ready to spend whatever it took to chase an NBA championship, and acquiring one of basketball’s biggest stars was supposed to bring that dream closer.
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Three years later, Durant was gone, Phoenix had missed the playoffs in his final season with the team, and Ishbia was reflecting on what went wrong. The fallout took another turn when Dillon Brooks, the player who arrived in the trade that sent Durant to Houston, entered the conversation with a pointed message of his own.
Ishbia had admitted that he made a mistake in how he approached building the Suns. Durant fired back at the owner on social media, defending his own performance. Then Brooks posted a message thanking Ishbia for cleaning up the “stench” in the locker room before he arrived, adding the hashtag “#culture.” The exchange turned a debate about Phoenix’s failed championship push into a personal war of words.
The original ambition had been much simpler. When Ishbia welcomed Durant to Phoenix, he made it clear that spending would not stand in the way of the team’s title pursuit. The Suns had reached the NBA Finals in 2021 and finished the following season with a 64-18 record, giving the franchise reason to believe it was close to winning it all.
“We’re going to go into the luxury tax, go do whatever it takes to try to win a championship,” Ishbia said at the time.
Phoenix was already 30-26 in February 2023 when it traded for Durant, hoping to turn a talented roster into a genuine title favorite. The deal brought an established superstar alongside Devin Booker, but it also cost the Suns Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Jae Crowder and four unprotected first-round picks, along with a future pick swap. The price was enormous, and the expectation was that Durant would make it worthwhile.
The Suns reached the Western Conference semifinals in Durant’s first postseason with the team, but they could not get any further. Minnesota swept Phoenix in the first round in 2024, exposing problems that star power alone could not solve. The following season was worse, as the Suns finished 36-46 and missed the playoffs altogether.
Durant’s individual production was rarely the main issue. He averaged 26.8 points per game in 2024-25, but Phoenix struggled to find the balance needed to compete consistently. Injuries, roster construction and defensive problems all contributed to a team that never lived up to the expectations attached to its expensive star trio.
Ishbia later reflected on the lesson he took from the Durant acquisition during an appearance on CNBC Sport. Rather than placing the entire failure on the player, the owner acknowledged that his own approach to building the roster had been flawed.
“There was not a defined culture and North Star where we were going, and therefore bringing in super talented players like Kevin Durant doesn’t necessarily lead to championships,” Ishbia said. “You’ve got to find guys and people that are aligned with the vision of where we’re going, the work ethic, the attitude, the care factor around winning, the grind every single day.”
He continued by explaining where he believed his early approach had fallen short.
“We have to define what we’re about in Phoenix, and stick with it, and believe in our vision and our path,” Ishbia added. “And I didn’t do that at the beginning. I just kind of threw money at the problem.”
Durant did not take the comments quietly. On X, he defended his contribution to the Suns and questioned the way Ishbia was now discussing the team’s culture. His response also included a pointed reference to a DUI, a line that took on a more personal dimension given Brooks’ own legal situation.
“#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,” Durant wrote, followed by laughing emojis.
Ishbia responded that Durant had misunderstood the interview and insisted he had not blamed him for the team’s failure. But Durant was not ready to let the matter go, replying that the owner should be grateful for what he had contributed before taking another shot at the money Phoenix would now have to pay him to play elsewhere.
“You obviously didn’t watch the clip. 😂 Didn’t blame you @Kdtrey5, but am happy with the culture we are building here in Phoenix,” Ishbia wrote.
“U should be giving Thanks every chance u get. You don’t have to pay me an absurd amount of money to play for another team,” Durant replied.
That exchange was already drawing attention when Brooks added his own message. The Suns wing had been charged with misdemeanor DUI offenses stemming from a March 2026 incident in Scottsdale, with the charges reported on September 30. Durant’s reference appeared to connect the owner’s comments about culture with Brooks’ legal troubles, although the precise intent behind his wording was not explicitly established.
Brooks’ Instagram Story was direct.
“Thanks Mat for cleaning up that stench in the locker room before I came #culture,” he wrote.
The comment placed Brooks firmly on the side of the organization he now represents. It also carried a particular edge because he had arrived in Phoenix as part of the deal that sent Durant away. Brooks was not simply an outside observer criticizing a former teammate. He had become part of the roster that the Suns were building after the Durant experiment ended.
The two players had already exchanged barbs on the court. During a matchup in Phoenix on April 7, 2026, Durant used a crossover to get past Brooks before knocking down a mid-range jumper. Their verbal exchange added another layer to a competitive relationship that had produced plenty of trash talk.
Durant was asked after the game whether Brooks’ physical defense and constant chatter motivated him. He dismissed the idea that Brooks could get under his skin, while still acknowledging the role he plays on the court.
“Not at all. I’m not giving him that. He don’t get that type of credit with me. Maybe with other guys that may turn up when he talks to em, but he’s not that important… He’s not that much of a concern to me. I wake up going and ready to play, but I respect Dillon. I respect what he brings to the game. I think that gets him going more than me. I just happened to get that ball right afterwards and make a good move, but it wasn’t in spite of Dillon… For me, it has nothing to do with my game,” Durant said.
That history makes Brooks’ latest post more than another social-media jab. His identity as a physical defender and outspoken competitor has long been part of his game, and Phoenix has since committed to him as a major part of its future. In his first season with the Suns, Brooks averaged a career-high 20.2 points, along with 3.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.
Phoenix also improved from a 36-46 record in 2024-25 to 45-37 in 2025-26. The Suns returned to the playoffs, though their season ended with a first-round sweep by Oklahoma City. The improvement offered a more encouraging regular season, but it did not establish that the franchise had solved its problems or moved back into the championship picture.
Brooks’ three-year, $73 million extension showed that Phoenix sees him as part of its future. The team has taken a different direction since trading Durant, placing greater emphasis on the identity Ishbia says he wants to establish. Still, a better regular-season record and a renewed commitment to culture do not guarantee postseason success.
The Suns’ next challenge is to prove that this approach can take them further than the previous one. For Durant, the dispute has reopened questions about how his time in Phoenix will be remembered. For Brooks, it has provided another chance to make his position clear. And for Ishbia, the public exchange has brought the lessons of his biggest roster gamble back into the spotlight.
Phoenix wanted Durant to bring a championship. Instead, his departure has left the franchise trying to define what comes next, with Brooks now among the players expected to help lead the way.