The Minnesota Timberwolves are clearly becoming one of the best teams in the Western Conference as Anthony Edwards almost led the squad to the NBA Finals this year. The Timberwolves aren't going anywhere, and it looked like they might bring in a big addition this offseason as rumors about a Kevin Durant trade grew loud recently.

However, those hopes were officially squashed on Sunday when Durant landed with the Houston Rockets.

Not too long ago, all of the chatter surrounding a Kevin Durant trade was centered around the Timberwolves. Minnesota tried to go for it at the trade deadline, but the team backed away after some concerns reportedly surfaced.

“The Minnesota Timberwolves had multiple concerns about trading for Kevin Durant, which is partly why the 15-time All-Star didn’t land with the organization after making an aggressive pitch for him at the trade deadline,” a report from Hoops Hype states.

Article Continues Below

A big reason why the Timberwolves backed off is the fact that there were other destinations that were higher on Durant's list. The Phoenix Suns were also reportedly targeting Rudy Gobert in trade discussions, and that had a big impact as well.

“The Timberwolves were concerned about trading for Durant when Minnesota wasn’t on his preferred list of destinations,” the report continued. “In addition, the Suns desired Rudy Gobert in trade talks, and losing their French defensive anchor to pair Julius Randle and Kevin Durant in the frontcourt together wasn’t seen as an ideal pairing defensively, HoopsHype has learned.”

The Timberwolves looked like a likely suitor for Kevin Durant at one point, but he ended up with the Houston Rockets. Houston does seem like a good fit for Durant as the team did finish in second place in the Western Conference last season.

Will Durant be able to help get them over the hump, or will the Rockets be the latest ship to sink following the arrival of the unique superstar talent?