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Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant suffered an ankle injury during Tuesday’s 104-93 NBA Cup win against the San Antonio Spurs and was ruled out for the remainder of the game.
Durant appeared to suffer the injury while driving to the basket in the second quarter. He was fouled as he went up for a shot before falling to the court and grabbing his ankle in pain.
Durant missed time earlier this season with a calf injury, which broke a stretch of durability for him that stretched into last season when he appeared in 75 games.
Playing 75 games in 2023-24 was a pleasant development for the future Hall of Famer considering durability has been the one concern about his game of late. After all, he missed the 2019-20 season and then played 55 or fewer games the next three campaigns.
When healthy, Durant is still one of the best players in the NBA and is averaging 26.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.6 blocks per game while shooting 53.2 percent from the field and 43.4 percent from deep.
Phoenix’s only real chance at competing for a deep playoff run in the daunting Western Conference is having Durant and Devin Booker healthy and on the floor together, so any setback to either star is reason for significant concern.
The Suns struggled when Durant was sidelined with the calf injury and will need the combination of Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale and Ryan Dunn to play well in his place if he is out again with this latest setback.
