Golden State forward Kevin Durant has an injured right achilles, a massive blow for the perennial All-Star and two-time NBA finals MVP who may be three weeks away from free agency and could also be facing a long rehabilitation process.
Warriors general manager Bob Myers was emotional when he gave the news after Game 5 of the NBA finals on Monday night. An MRI will be performed on Tuesday to determine the severity of the injury, but Durant’s season is clearly over and his recovery will likely take several months if the achilles is indeed torn.
“He’s one of the most misunderstood people,” Myers said. “He’s a good teammate, he’s a good person, it’s not fair. I’m lucky to know him. I don’t have all the information on what really the extent of what it all means until we get a MRI, but the people that worked with him and cleared him are good people, they’re good people.”
Myers said Durant’s first injury of this postseason was a calf injury, as the Warriors have insisted throughout. Myers also said that he is willing to accept the blame for the decision to play Durant in Game 5. Golden State won 106-105, cutting Toronto’s lead in the NBA finals to 3-2.
“I don’t believe there’s anybody to blame, but I understand in this world and if you have to, you can blame me,” Myers said. “I run our basketball operations department. And to tell you something about Kevin Durant, Kevin Durant loves to play basketball, and the people that questioned whether he wanted to get back to this team were wrong.”
Durant shouted an expletive as he left the floor, his frustration obvious. He was supposed to be one of the marquee free agents this summer. He may now end up exercising his $31.5m option to stay with the Warriors, especially if he’s going to be sidelined for an extended period.
“I’m hurting deep in the soul right now,” Durant wrote on Instagram after the game. His season is over. The Warriors’ season isn’t. “We do it for Kevin,” Thompson said.
