Phoenix are hopeful that Kevin Durant will recover fully from his latest injury before the start of the playoffs, as he’s been ruled out to play at all during the team’s current road trip. The superstar sprained his left ankle during Sunday’s loss to Houston and had to leave the court.
The road trip began on Tuesday night for the Suns, as they lost 133-123 to Milwaukee. This Friday they’ll play again at Boston and then finally on Sunday in New York, until they finally return home to Arizona to face Golden State on April 8.
“As of now, we don’t expect him to join us on the trip,” shared coach Mike Budenholzer before Tuesday’s match. The Phoenix tactician was enthusiastic about the veteran making his way back to the courts before the end of the regular season, as they’ll have four more games to earn a spot in the play-in tournament.
“We’re certainly hopeful,” Budenholzer said, conscious that the Suns still need to fight to determine the Western Conference’s last two playoff spots. “I think these first few days will be important, but we’re hopeful he’ll be back before end of the season.”
During the weekend against the Rockets, the 15-time All-Star stepped on Jabari Smith Jr.’s foot and immediately fell to the floor during the third quarter of their 148-109 defeat. As KD finally got back on his feet, he couldn’t put any weight on his left leg.
The Arizona club is now 11th in the West’s standings, still two games behind Dallas (9th) and a game and a half behind Sacramento, who are 10th. Only the franchises who end seventh through 10th will earn a spot to compete in the play-in tournament.
At 36-years of age, Durant ranks as the sixth-best scoring average of the 2024-25 campaign with 26.6, plus 6.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
