The Kevin Durant Thread (2016 - 17 Pt. 1)

[JulesWinnfield]

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I never felt it looked that bad. If Zaza landed on the side of his leg as opposed to the front of his leg this would have been a lot worse. But the direction the hyperextension occurred in is rarely conducive to worst case scenario knee injuries

I still say worst case scenario here might be a torn pcl, that's the ligament that is vulnerable to the impact KD had. And with a torn pcl he could still be back for the playoffs

[JulesWinnfield]

Official

Grade 2 mcl sprain and bone bruise

Reevaluated in 4 weeks

Surprised the mcl was involved here. Not surprised at the timetable

[JulesWinnfield]

Obviously, re evaluated in 4 weeks doesn't mean out 4 weeks. But it doesn't figure to be much longer than that

Grade 2 sprain which is still a tear but the ligament remained attached

[JordansBulls]

Do the Spurs overtake them now for best record?

[bondom34]

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[MisterHibachi]

Gonna miss another first team all nba.

[JulesWinnfield]

Steph had the mcl sprain in last years playoffs of course, but the warriors classified his as a more mild grade 1 (Durant is grade 2)

The bone bruise isn't an insignificant aspect of this either. The term itself makes the injury seem less serious than it actually can be, and there have been cases where these things lingered around and really impacted level of play in an adverse way. See Dwayne wade in the 2013 playoffs. They can be tricky

They're still the favorites in my view but even with Durant returning I think their odds fall some for many reasons. We don't know quite how close to himself Durant will be... they might also lose home court which could impact their odds a smidge (they can still overcome it though)... plus you just upset the apple cart of this well oiled machine by taking your leading scorer out for a prolonged stretch, even if they remain wildly talented and still have a big part of the core of a 73 win team

[Krodis]

Certainly not the worst possible news for the Warriors, but this does make things a bit trickier for them. If they can hold on to the 1 seed and Durant is back and close to 100% by the second round, they're fine. If they fall to the 2 or they have to play the second round without him (or with a limited Durant) it could put them in some trouble.

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[JulesWinnfield]

The InStreetClothes.com injury database has 12 in-season examples of Grade 2 MCL sprains, including players like Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, and Rudy Gobert. The average number of games missed for these players sits at 21 games or roughly six weeks. The Warriors have 22 regular season games remaining.

The tibia bone bruise will also play a role in his recovery. Bone contusions, especially in weight-bearing areas can be slow to repair and require ample time to appropriately heal. Bone injuries, particularly bone contusions, have been a problematic injury in the NBA this season.

http://instreetclothes.com/2017/03/01/understanding-kevin-durants-grade-2-mcl-sprain/

[JLei]

The InStreetClothes.com injury database has 12 in-season examples of Grade 2 MCL sprains, including players like Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, and Rudy Gobert. The average number of games missed for these players sits at 21 games or roughly six weeks. The Warriors have 22 regular season games remaining.

The tibia bone bruise will also play a role in his recovery. Bone contusions, especially in weight-bearing areas can be slow to repair and require ample time to appropriately heal. Bone injuries, particularly bone contusions, have been a problematic injury in the NBA this season.

http://instreetclothes.com/2017/03/01/understanding-kevin-durants-grade-2-mcl-sprain/

I've had this injury before when I was younger. **** lingers. But you are definitely able to play in about 4-6 weeks so timetable makes sense. With the pain killers available to these guys. He will be fine to play in the playoffs. Especially since they won't be challenged in the first round anyways.

[GSP]

Very interested to see how their defense looks without him. Warriors rely a crapton on him and Draymond for their defense, almost a twoman show on that end really. They struggled against the Wizards and generally when he or Draymond arent out there the defense looks alot worse

[JulesWinnfield]

I've tried to read as much as I can on this injury today with various opinions from doctors on twitter and in the media... and an opinion ive seen a lot is that the bone bruise is the more serious of the two injuries and the reason why his timetable is still not fully known. The mcl sprain is getting the headlines but the bone bruise (which is apparently more accurately described as a fracture of the innermost layer of the bone, doesn't show up on an x Ray) is what many are saying is the bigger issue and one that can linger and even lead to actual fractures if you rush back on it.

[Colbinii]

Why has Durant always been a relatively poor clutch performer?

From RS 2011-2016 (Rate stats are per 48): 195 Games, 114 Wins, 819 Minutes, 47.7 PTS, 35.2 FGA, 39.7 FG%, 11.5 3PA, 33.6 3P%, 10.6 REB, 2.4 AST, 3.4 TOV, .9 STL, 1.8 BLK, +/- of +7.3

[GSP]

Basically 1-2 without him so far (he played 1 minute 30 against Washington before injury). Gonna be interesting to track the Warriors. I expect a noticeable dropoff defensively and a clear one on offense as well. Draymond is the Dpoy IMO (should be 3peating) but Kd was playing like a top 10 defender this season. Him and Draymond are the best defensive duo in the league this season for sure IMO. Their flawed perimeter defense (with Iggys inconsistency tho hes been in form recently) will be more glaring I think. Think Klay/Steph in particular are gonna look much worse on that end

[wully834]

Best basketball play I've seen from KD , been a blessing to watch this year. Hope hes 100% for playoffs. With the depth GS lost in offseason, hard to replace someone of his caliber.

[StepBackCrack]

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[StepBackCrack]

Watching GSW games isn't the same without him. Injuries sucks so much man. Such a bad luck with injuries. A major injury took a whole season of his prime already and another injury might ruin another prime season for him now. This is probably too much for him to handle mentally now. I hope he stays strong. Sad to see many wish his injury was bad enough to miss the whole season. Shows you how ugly this sport can get.

[StepBackCrack]

[StepBackCrack]

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[StepBackCrack]

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Great stuff. Love how candid and relaxed when doing these interviews. Thank God an injury didn't completely ruin another season of his prime. At least he has a chance to play again in the season.