The obvious, easy, logical KD trade not being discussed ....

[F Gump]

Durant is about 6 years older than Davis, who is about 6 years older than Doncic.

That's a move in the wrong direction, and Durant is probably the worst defender of the three (at this point). If "defense wins championships" I can't imagine how this swap would appeal to Harrison or anyone, really.

Yes, the current roster is short of offensive creation, but the real problem (and why I can believe that Kidd was frustrated by this trade, despite simultaneously believing he was aware and in favor of a potential Luka trade) is that the entire roster is set up (well) to play pick and roll basketball. That's who Lively and Gafford are, how Thompson was supposed to fit, how PJ Washington's offensive game has been shaped since his arrival, where Hardy's training time has been spent, etc, etc, etc. Amazingly, this Doncic trade has left the team without one, single pick and roll ball handler (that's definitely not Kyrie's game), and screening/playing off of a pick and roll guy isn't really what Davis does, either. He probably COULD play that way, but not from the 4, not with Lively or Gafford on the floor at the 5.

I gave the current regime all the credit in the world for cutting bait with Porzingis back in the day, despite the lackluster nature of that deal, because it was clear that the fit here was not a good one and it felt like removing him from the equation was the only way to move forward. But now, the team is right back in the same situation, more or less, albeit with a better player than Porzingis, and this time with Luka not in the mix.

If the plan is to replace Luka with another pick and roll initiator (probably the easiest way to fix this, given the rest of the roster's construction), then I question their ability to move forward with all three bigs. If the plan is to run the offense through Davis, fine, only my life force will drain quickly if so, as I don't believe his offensive game is of a quality to allow such an approach to be successful at the league's highest level.

Replacing Davis with Durant doesn't address these issues at all, imho, nor does adding Durant TO Davis, honestly. The team currently has no offensive identity, and frankly, it seems as though we're dealing with a GM who doesn't believe that's a hurdle that must be cleared, and possibly doesn't even recognize that such a hurdle even exists. Given the complaints we've (at least I've) had with Kidd's offensive system in the past, I think what we've got here is the perfect storm of ineptitude that will very quickly tear this team down.

I have no wish to add to the negativity that has been rampant since February, but...I just don't see a way forward that is going to compare favorably to where the team was just a year ago. I'm very sad about all of this.

You've expressed valid concerns - and that AD is not the right answer .... but you didn't answer your own question. If AD is not the answer, then you can make him expendable to some team who needs his skill set (because he is indeed highly talented) -- in which case, who are players you see that might be worth chasing?

The idea that Nico would be too doltish to do anything is not a real answer. Hopefully Nico is shown the door, to open up avenues to exploring ways to move forward.