Golden State Warriors small forward Kevin Durant suffered an apparent calf strain against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night. What could his injury mean to the Toronto Raptors moving forward?
If the Toronto Raptors eventually make the NBA Finals, they could end up playing the Golden State Warriors without their biggest weapon: Kevin Durant.
Durant suffered an apparent right calf strain during a routine jump shot against the Houston Rockets in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals on Wednesday night. The reigning Finals MVP had 22 points, five rebounds, and four assists when he took a trip to the locker room and wouldn’t return to the game.
Kevin Durant has suffered a right calf strain.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 9, 2019
Injuries are an unfortunate reality within sports, but you never want to see anyone ever get hurt. Ever. Especially someone at the top of their game, like Kevin Durant.
Along with Raptors forward, Kawhi Leonard, Durant has been the standout performer in the NBA Playoffs this year and looked to take the Warriors to the Finals for the fifth straight year, and the third time since he joined from Oklahoma City.
He’s averaging 34.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game in eleven playoff contests, shooting 51-percent from the field and 41-percent from three. In short, Durant is having another stellar postseason.
If the Raptors do end up making it to the NBA Finals – their first ever – and face off against the Golden State Warriors, they might not end up facing Durant at all.
The implications of that could be huge, which comes as no surprise.
In two games against the Toronto Raptors this year, Durant averaged 40.5 points, nine rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, while shooting 58-percent from the field and 54-percent from three.
The Warriors went down in both games, but that wasn’t for a lack of trying on the part of Durant, who put up 51 points in an overtime loss against the Raptors. The Warriors were without Steph Curry and Draymond Green in that game, but Toronto was without Leonard in their win in Oakland.
Without Durant, the Warriors instantly lose one of their All-World talents and one of the greatest scorers of all time. His high release combined with his 7-foot-5 wingspan makes his shot virtually unblockable, and the ability to score on all three levels makes him that much more dangerous.
It makes the Warriors task on offense much harder too. Without having to worry about Durant, Nick Nurse can throw a plethora of elite defenders at Curry to try to slow him down at the perimeter.
In five games against the Rockets, Curry’s play has declined significantly. He’s shooting 39-percent from the field and 26-percent from three, both numbers are less than familiar for a player of Curry’s caliber, and if they don’t begin to balance out when he takes on more volume shooting in Durant’s absence the Warriors crown could be in jeopardy.
The loss of Durant could be a big blow to the Warriors on the defensive end of the court too. He counts as a good, not great, defender, but his length automatically makes him a tough matchup when he’s guarding you.
That also adds to his value as a help defender, as Durant can cover space quicker than most, which can result in weakside blocks or deflections. Without him to matchup against one of Leonard or Pascal Siakam, the Warriors will be at a disadvantage in the frontcourt.
Durant guarded Leonard for a total of 50 possessions when the two teams met at the Scotiabank Arena. In that period, Leonard scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field. If Draymond Green is likely to guard Siakam or Marc Gasol, then Andre Iguodala will matchup with Leonard.
Hopefully, the Warriors won’t be without Kevin Durant for the NBA Finals, if they should make it. But if they do and he is unavailable, it could be an interesting affair.