NEW YORK — Kevin Durant thought it was an ordinary hamstring strain, a grade one at best. Then the Nets got a second MRI scan on his left leg that showed the injury was a bit more severe.
Speaking to reporters for the first time since Feb. 13, Durant echoed sentiments similar to what head coach Steve Nash had
“It was one of those things where I’m not feeling a ton of pain, but you don’t want to force one of these injuries and go out there and make it worse,” he said before the Nets played the Hornets on Thursday. “In my mind, I was like, ‘Damn, I could play,’ but then, it was also like, ‘Man, you’ve got to be smart and cautious with this type of injury.’ ”
Durant’s return is near, and the Nets hope the cautious approach will pay dividends in keeping him on the floor for their playoff and championship run. The team’s All-Star captain has missed the last 21 games with an injury he got in Oakland against the Golden State Warriors. He is the most critical piece to a championship jigsaw puzzle: A two-time Finals MVP averaging 29 points, seven rebounds and five assists per game, but has only appeared in 19 games this season.
“Him missing significant time, we miss him. We can’t wait for him to get back, literally,” Kyrie Irvng said. “But we’re all staying patient. We know what he brings to the table. We know the respect that he garners from all of us in terms of a leader on our team, but we’ve got to figure it out, game-to-game, until he’s back.”
The Nets have been extremely cautious in handling Durant to the point where some thought they may have held him out unnecessarily or that he would have been able to return had the games had higher stakes.
“I don’t know what would have happened if we weren’t winning games, or I don’t think nobody would have forced me to play,” he said. “They wanted me to just get healthy. And I probably wouldn’t have forced it either.”
The reality is the Nets wanted to get Durant’s conditioning in check. Health and safety protocol violations earlier this season cost him two separate three-game stints. He was also playing in his first set of games since the ruptured Achilles tendon that cost him all of the 2019-20 season.
Durant recently cleared a rehab hurdle of participating in four-on-four games and workouts, but said his biggest accomplishment was being able to run up and down the floor again after having to rehab his hamstring.
“So it was good to get some of that stuff in, transitioning from offense to defense, stuff I haven’t done in a couple of weeks,” he said. “It’s good to get a few of those sessions in before I want to jump into an NBA game, and I think that’s what we’ve been doing the last few days and what we’re gonna do going forward.”
It’s been a longer than expected road for Durant to return. What was initially dubbed a minor injury with a timeline of “at least two games” became a month and a half hiatus. Durant is not expected to play in either of the back-to-back games on Sunday and Monday against the Bulls and the Knicks, but Wednesday’s matchup against the Pelicans is fair game.
“We’re monitoring him and continuing to push and find opportunities within that structure for him to get high intensity loads in so that we can measure whether it is safe for him to come back and play,” Nash said. “So, everything is progressing the way we would like and fingers crossed it won’t be too long.”
The Nets haven’t missed Durant too much. In his absence, they laid claim to the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Entering Thursday night, the Nets won 19 of their last 22 games. They have become the NBA’s hottest team and drive the conversation for championship contention.
They have also gotten better, adding two former All-Stars, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge. Aldridge said Durant recruited him once his buyout with the Spurs was official and told him to “definitely come here.”
Durant said he’s looking forward to playing with both the Nets’ newest pickups: “Guys who have been through a lot in this league and are looking forward to another opportunity to chase something special here with us.”
He also said he’s looking forward to picking up where he left off but is more concerned about the team continuing to come together as a unit.
“I was playing solid before I got injured. I felt like we were just starting to figure each other out. James, Kyrie, myself, and different lineups out there on the floor. I felt like we were starting to gain our rhythm,” Durant said. “And that’s more so what I’m concerned about. How I play, I figure that out over time whenever I get out there, whatever position coach puts me in. I’m looking forward to trying to conquer that as best as I can. But the chemistry of the team is something that I kept an eye on and tried to help when I’ve been away; guys have been doing an amazing job.”