In an Instagram message posted from his hospital bed in New York on Wednesday, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant confirmed that he did rupture his Achilles tendon in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night in Toronto.
The injury occurred late in the second quarter as Durant was making his return from the calf strain he suffered on May 8 in the Western Conference Finals.
He defended his decision to return to action in the Instagram message and emphasized that he is distressed over missing the remainder of the Finals. Durant, who won the NBA Finals MVP with the Warriors in each of the last two seasons, was expected to opt out of his contract this summer to become one of the most coveted free agents this summer.
In an Instagram message posted from his hospital bed in New York on Wednesday, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant confirmed that he did rupture his Achilles tendon in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night in Toronto
Kevin Durant went down with an Achilles injury in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night. Some fans could be heard cheering over the injury, which made Warriors players irate
‘What’s good everybody,’ Durant’s Instagram post began. ‘I wanted to update you all: I did rupture my Achilles. Surgery was today and it was a success, EASY MONEY
‘My road back starts now! I got my family and my loved ones by my side and we truly appreciate all the messages and support people have sent our way.’
It is not known how long Durant will be out of action, but a ruptured Achilles injury can often take at least a year to recover from, if not longer.
But as uncertain as his future is following the injury, Durant explained that his biggest regret is missing out on the remainder of the NBA Finals, where the Toronto Raptors hold a 3-2 series edge over Golden State heading into Game 6 in Oakland on Thursday night.
‘Like I said Monday, I’m hurting deeply, but I’m OK,’ he wrote. ‘Basketball is my biggest love and I wanted to be out there that night because that’s what I do. I wanted to help my teammates on our quest for the three peat.
‘Its (sic) just the way things go in this game and I’m proud that I gave it all I physically could, and I’m proud my brothers got the W.
‘It’s going to be a journey but I’m built for this. I’m a hooper.’
In conclusion, Durant wished his teammates good luck on Thursday: ‘I know my brothers can get this Game 6, and I will be cheering with dub nation while they do it.’
Kevin Durant’s mother tearfully defended her son’s decision to return from a calf strain and play in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night, when the Golden State Warriors star suffered a devastating Achilles injury during a win over the Toronto Raptors
Durant’s mother tearfully defended her son’s decision to return from a calf strain and play in Game 5 on Monday night.
‘I was excited for him because I know how much he loves the game and I know he’s been injured before, so I knew he wouldn’t jeopardize himself,’ Wanda Durant told ‘Good Morning America’ Wednesday. ‘So when he told me he was ready to play I said ‘OK.”‘
Durant’s decision to return was criticized by some NBA fans who hoped he would switch teams this summer.
He looked sharp in his first game since May 8, scoring 11 points in 12 minutes after hitting his first two three-point attempts on Monday night.
One person with a positive outlook is Durant’s mother Wanda
Unfortunately for the former NBA MVP, he suffered a non-contact injury near the end of the first half and crumpled onto the court, leading to an outpouring of emotion from Wanda.
‘I was excited because he was doing so well and then when it happened I kinda just sunk,’ Wanda said, describing what it was like to see her son injure his Achilles. ‘I was just glued on him and glued on his eyes to see how he was doing.
‘[It was] hurtful to see the anguish in his eyes and he looked as though he felt somewhat dejected.’
Although Wanda was quite upset about her son’s misfortune, Kevin Durant stayed strong for his mother.
‘I talked to him five to 10 minutes afterwards,’ Wanda said. ‘And he just told me not to cry… I know he worked so hard to get back to play. And he just told me he was going to be OK and don’t worry.’
Wanda tweeted immediately after Monday’s win, defending her son from his critics.
‘For ALL of you who question my son as a Man, question his Heart, question his Integrity and question his LOVE for the game of basketball, you DON’T know him,’ Wanda Durant wrote on Twitter without specifying whom she was referring to. ‘He has a heart of a true Warrior! This too shall pass. God Bless you ALL.’
While some Toronto Raptors fans could be heard cheering when Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant went down with an Achilles injury in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night, one citizen from the famously polite country decided to send flowers instead
While some Raptors fans could be heard cheering when Durant went down with the Achilles injury on Monday night, one citizen from the famously polite country decided to send flowers instead.
According to NBC Sports, an anonymous Raptors fan sent a floral arrangement to the Warriors offices in downtown Oakland to apologize ‘on behalf of Canada’.
The basket contained an assortment of carnations and a ribbon reading, ‘Canada is sorry KD.’
‘Dear KD and the Warriors: I can’t even believe those dumba** Raptors fans cheered when they saw you were injured,’ the card read, according to NBC Sports. ‘I was watching the game and felt horrible. It was a total disgrace. I hereby apologize on behalf of Canada. Prayers for recovery.’
In fairness to Raptors fans, some could be heard chanting Durant’s name as he was helped to the locker room on Monday.
Although the Warriors won Game 5, staving off elimination and forcing a Game 6 in Oakland on Thursday, the reaction to Durant’s injury left Golden State players incensed.
‘It was bulls***,’ Warriors guard Klay Thompson said. ‘That was freaking ridiculous. I can’t even put into words how mad I was about that.’
Raptors players Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka and Pascal Siakam tried to hush fans who were cheering at the sight of an injured Durant.
(Left) Recording artist Drake reacts with Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) after an apparent injury during the second quarter against the Toronto Raptors. Warriors general manager Bob Myers (right) said ‘multiple doctors’ cleared Durant to return on Monday
One Fox Sports Radio host saw Myers’ post-game press conference as being cynical
Durant was making his return from the calf injury he suffered during the Western Conference Finals on May 8, and although he was cleared to return by team doctors, the Warriors still faced criticism for putting him on the court.
‘I blame the Warriors for KD getting hurt and I don’t care what they say about it,’ NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley told ESPN, which is reporting that the injury is a torn Achilles.
Warriors general manager Bob Myers anticipated this criticism in the early hours of Tuesday morning while addressing reporters in Toronto.
‘He was cleared to play tonight; that was a collaborative decision,’ Myers said. ‘I don’t believe there’s anybody to blame, but I understand in this world and if you have to, you can blame me. I run our basketball operations department.’
Myers also made it clear that Durant wanted to return, in spite of the fact that he was expected to opt out of his current contract and any potential injury risk could affect his market value this summer.
‘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,’ Myers said.
There was plenty of grief to go around in the wake Golden State’s miraculous but costly Game 5 win.
The New York tabloids saw Durant’s injury as being particularly damaging for the Knicks
The satirical newspaper, The Onion, poked fun a Myers’s perceived lack of sympathy for Durant
In addition to Myers, who was on the verge of tears during his press conference, New Yorkers lamented the loss of the Knicks and Brooklyn Nets’ top-free agent target.
Both teams were expected to pursue the 30-year-old Durant in free agency this summer, according to multiple reports, but now he could feasibly opt in to the final year of his contract with Golden State to stay with the Warriors next season and become a free agent in the summer of 2020.
Prior to the injury, Durant was expected to command well over $30 million a season on a new deal.
However offering that much to Durant seems imprudent now that he could be looking at a year of rehabilitation, if he did, in fact, tear his Achilles.
Whereas former NBA All-Star Dominique Wilkins managed to successfully return from a torn Achilles in the 1990s, legends such as Kobe Bryant and Patrick Ewing both struggled to recover from the same injury in their 30s and were out of the league soon thereafter.
If Durant decides to opt in to the final year of his deal, this summer’s free agent class will still include his teammate, Klay Thompson, Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard, Boston Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving, and Charlotte Hornets point guard Kemba Walker.
Durant has yet to speak publicly since injuring his calf on May 8. He would have spoken to reporters after Game 5, but was no longer required to do so after suffering his injury.