The Phoenix Suns and Houston Rockets have a fascinating shared history.

From executing trades including Charles Barkley and Kevin Durant, to regularly competing for playoff posturing in the Western Conference, these teams may see the competition take an uptick in intensity this season. 

A large slice of this equation is due to the animosity on Durant's side following the pair's split last summer. Follow the implications of the pent-up tension ahead of Saturday night below.

This is the first time Durant returns to Phoenix since an October spat with Phoenix governor Mat Ishbia as the result of comments made on CNBC. Dillon Brooks got involved with the situation when he made a social media post taking a direct shot at Durant.

Suns star Brooks definitely sees the value in the matchup, believing that his competitive fire goes beyond taking on the player he was traded for. 

The quote is via Duane Rankin (The Arizona Republic).

“I think there's juice already, because he didn't play the first game back in Phoenix. So, yeah, it's going to be a good game. I love playing (against) my old teams. It brings a certain fire out of me.”

Brooks seldom shies away from the limelight, and surely won't in this case. He's also on a solid springboard to have a season-best game after playing excellent basketball in Thursday's win over the Orlando Magic.

The truth is that a number of factors are contributing to the rising of temperature. This includes the already fiery personality that Brooks has, as well as Green looking to one-up his former franchise. The other factors feature Durant's bitterness towards Ishbia, as well as the general physical edge in which the two teams play with.

This is the first time the two teams are squaring off in the 2026-27 season. This is following Houston sweeping the season series against the Suns a season ago, just for both teams to face the same fate as a first-round playoff exit. 

Another wrinkle that is factoring into the newfound competitive fire is the return of Fred VanVleet. VanVleet is another player that brings consistent competitive fire, and is seemingly fixing several issues that plagued the Rockets last season.

One of the under-discussed points is in how the Rockets opt to defend Devin Booker. Amen Thompson is quite talkative in-game, but the Houston defense hasn't been as effective with the fourth-year star in various lineups. Tari Eason and Marcus Smart are others that can create frustration for Booker/the Suns offense. 

Ultimately, this seems to be a game that is setting up to be decided in the final two minutes of the game.