This much is abundantly clear: Kevin Durant will miss Friday's Game 6 of the Warriors' Western Conference semifinal series against the Rockets with a strained calf and is all but assured to be unavailable Sunday if a Game 7 is necessary.
The Warriors said Thursday that an MRI exam confirmed Durant suffered a strained right calf during Game 5 Wednesday night. Durant didn't travel with the team to Houston for Game 6 and will be reevaluated next week, effectively sidelining him for the rest of the series.
Kevin Durant injury update: pic.twitter.com/M4oQBpLPyq
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) May 9, 2019
But then what?
Warriors coach Steve Kerr expressed optimism that Durant, after resting the injury, will return if the team advances to the conference final round.
"I think it's good news," Kerr said Thursday after the Warriors landed in Houston of the MRI results (via ESPN). "Calf strain, he's had them before. He's responded well. Obviously, we're disappointed he won't be able to play in this series. If we're able to win the series and move on, looks good for his return in the not-too-distant future."
There is some conflicting speculation on that point.
Dr. Alan Beyer, an orthopedic surgeon and the executive medical director at the renowned Hoag Orthopedic Institute in Newport Beach, California, told CBS Sports on Thursday that a mild strain means "somewhere between a Grade 1 and Grade 2 strain, which is going to likely keep him out for two weeks in a best-case scenario."
The conference finals are set to begin Tuesday, with Game 5 scheduled for May 22, almost two weeks exactly from Thursday.
If Beyer's timeline is accurate, then, yes, Durant could be back in the next round, but not until somewhere between Games 5 and 6 should the Warriors get past the Rockets to meet the Trail Blazers or Nuggets.
That was a much bigger "if" as of Thursday, and that's reflected in how Las Vegas sportsbooks are viewing the series.
Via ESPN: "With Durant out for Game 6 on Friday against the Rockets, the two-time defending champions are now consensus 7.5-point underdogs in Houston. That spread would be the largest Golden State has faced with Steph Curry in the lineup and Steve Kerr as head coach — a span of 440 games dating back to 2014, including the postseason."
A two-week absence jibes in part with what TNT reported in the immediate aftermath of the injury, saying his recovery could take 2-3 weeks. The upper end of that estimate would see Durant likely missing all of the Western Conference finals. So even if the two-time defending champions advance, there will be a big hole in their offense and rotation for a relatively lengthy period this time of year.
Durant, 30, appeared to suffer the injury late in the third quarter after attempting a mid-range jump shot. He landed awkwardly, without any contact, and then reached for his lower leg.
Kevin Durant goes to the locker room after suffering an apparent non-contact injury on lower leg pic.twitter.com/JCLv3szwz8
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 9, 2019
Immediately after the game in which Durant was injured, Kerr was blunt about the injury the team officially kept things open-ended: "He's not going to play Game 6," Kerr told The Athletic. "We can all pretend and just say he's doubtful. But he's not playing Game 6."
On the bright side for the Warriors: They're up 3-2 in the series going into Friday's 9 p.m. ET game (ESPN).
"Next man up," Warriors guard Klay Thompson said (via the San Francisco Chronicle). "If we need to have him take off a game, we will, 'cause we need him healthy; we plan on playing for a long time. So, we desperately need him if we wanna win a championship, but we can win one game without him. I have confidence in this group."
After he was injured, Durant limped off the court and back to the locker room. He scored 22 points and added five rebounds in 32 minutes before exiting.
Durant has been fantastic so far this postseason. He entered Wednesday averaging 35.4 points while shooting 51.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in the playoffs.
