At long last, some good news on the injury front for the Golden State Warriors.
After missing the team’s past six games with an incomplete right ribs fracture, Kevin Durant plans to rejoin the rotation for Thursday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, per ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes:
Golden State forward Kevin Durant (ribs) to ESPN: “You can tell them I’m playing Thursday” when Milwaukee comes to town. Tonight, Durant is missing his sixth straight game.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) March 28, 2018
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, ever the cautious prognosticator when it comes to injuries, all but confirmed Durant’s sentiments, per the San Francisco Chronicle‘s Connor Letourneau:
Warriors forward Kevin Durant is expected to return Thursday against Milwaukee from a rib injury that has sidelined him nearly two weeks.
“He’s doing great,” head coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday. “He wanted to play tonight, but we didn’t let him. We’ll probably let him play Thursday.”
This news is a big deal for the Warriors. Durant currently joins Stephen Curry (MCL sprain), Draymond Green (hip contusion/flu-like symptoms), Omri Casspi (ankle) and Klay Thompson (broken thumb) on the injury-riddled shelf. Jordan Bell even suffered a sprained right ankle during Golden State’s Tuesday night tilt, though he isn’t expected to miss any time.
Getting Durant back will serve as a quasi-return to normalcy, particularly if it comes alongside Draymond Green. And that’s all the Warriors need. They aren’t hoping to catch the Houston Rockets for the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed. That ship has sailed. They just need to gradually inch their way toward becoming whole again, or at least close to whole, in time for the playoffs.
Durant’s return is a step in that direction. He’s the primary reason why they’re supposed to be Curry-proof. Steph’s absence should no longer harm them as much with him leading the charge. Granted, the Warriors are a net minus per 100 possessions in the time he’s played without the All-Star floor general since Jan. 1, according to NBA.com. But that feels more like temporary noise than anything else.
Regardless, even if you’re low on whatever version of the Warriors exists without Curry, there’s no denying they won’t maximize that iteration of themselves without a fully healthy Durant.
