Getty Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant
There’s good news and bad news when it comes to the injury status of Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant. The good news is that there has been nothing reported that points to him missing extended time with his strained calf beyond what was initially revealed. Durant will still be re-evaluated this week, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to be back and on the floor in the immediate future.
It actually sounds like the opposite may prove to be true. The hope remains that Durant can come back at some point during the Western Conference Finals, which would mean he comes back somewhere around 2-3 weeks after the injury (at the latest).
But on Monday, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr did his best to cool off the chatter around Durant’s quick return. Ahead of Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers, Logan Murdock of NBC Sports BayArea (via Yahoo! Sports) revealed that Kerr said everyone needs to “slow down a little bit” on the subject of Durant.
“I think everyone needs to slow down a little bit on the Kevin stuff,” Kerr said Monday afternoon. “He hasn’t even stepped on the floor yet.”
For what it’s worth, this likely points to the fact that the Warriors are taking it slow with Durant more than anything else. There would be no reason for the team to rush the star forward back onto the practice court until he’s feeling far better from the injury.
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When Will Kevin Durant Return From Injury?
The biggest question of them all is whether Durant will find a way to get back onto the floor during this series against the Blazers. There has to be some concern that it won’t pan out, largely due to the timeline which some have mentioned as roughly two-to-six weeks. If that’s the case, then a possible NBA Finals return is far more realistic.
Just recently, Stadium’s Shams Charania called the injury “tricky,” and stated that you can’t return from a calf strain early or it could result in further injury. He also referenced the end of the series as a possible timeline for return.
“For the Warriors, the hope is as long as they advance to the conference finals, he will be able to come back at some point. Whether that’s Game 4, Game 6, Game 7, the NBA Finals if they’re able to get there, that remains to be seen.” Charania said.
Kevin Durant’s Injury Re-Evaluation & Possible Timeline
The injury to Durant occurred on Wednesday, May 8 and it was revealed the next day that he would be re-evaluated in one week. That means he’ll be checked out on Thursday, May 16, which is the same day as Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. From there, Games 3 and 4 are on Saturday, May 18 and Monday, May 20, meaning that all four games are before even hitting the full two-week mark.
A best-case scenario is likely that Durant finds a way to get back at some point in the final three games of the series, assuming more than four games are needed. The date of the NBA Finals opener is set for May 30, which would be exactly three weeks from the day after the injury happened.
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