With Kevin Durant on the shelf for the next month, things could get crazy for the Golden State Warriors.
Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant looks on from the bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Philadelphia 76ers, Monday, Feb. 27, 2017, in Philadelphia. The Warriors won 119-108. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)
Durant suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in the team’s loss to the Washington Wizards on Feb. 28 and the Warriors promptly dropped their next two games. With just a two-and-a-half game lead over the San Antonio Spurs for the best record in the Western Conference, the Warriors will have to fend off another strong Spurs team while keeping an eye out for the freshly reloaded Cleveland Cavaliers. Not to mention potential potholes looming in Houston and Utah.
The Warriors were virtual shoo-ins for a championship just a few weeks ago. Durant had finally found his groove alongside Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, and Golden State was dominating every team on the schedule. With Durant on the mend, does his injury change Golden State’s playoff prospects? Perry Green and Stephen D. Riley of the AFRO Sports Desk debate this question.
Riley: With or without Durant, Golden State should be title favorites. Durant’s injury should only keep him out a few weeks and he’ll hopefully return full strength in time for the postseason. But even with their superstar injured, the Warriors have enough star power left over to fuel another championship run. The beautiful part about Durant’s summer acquisition was that the Warriors didn’t need his traditional 25 to 30 points per game—they just needed someone who can attack one-on-one when the game bogs down. Golden State witnessed first-hand last summer how important isolation scorers are after watching LeBron James and Kyrie Irving shred through their defense. The Warriors have played excellent team basketball over the last few seasons but Durant’s addition unleashed a new chapter in Golden State basketball this season. As long as Durant is healthy, he doesn’t have to be dominant, just available late in the game once the playoffs heat up.
Green: The Warriors’ roster before Durant’s arrival could survive and manage, but this new-look Golden State team has less depth, so the Warriors need him, and they need him healthy. Golden State parted ways with at least six rotation players from last season’s roster and simply doesn’t have the reinforcements to sustain an injury to one of its top four players. Cleveland is now loaded after a pair of veteran buyouts and midseason acquisitions, and they should now be the clear-cut favorite to win the title this year. I’m still counting San Antonio as a threat out West—one that could become very real if the Spurs take the top seed and wrestle away home court advantage. But no team in the Association is as loaded from top to bottom right now like the Cavaliers are. Things looked almost too easy for Golden State just a few weeks ago but Durant’s injury loosens the season-long stranglehold that the Warriors appeared to have.
Riley: Even sans Durant, the Warriors still have Curry, a two-time MVP winner, arguably the top shooter in the game in Thompson, and an annual defensive MVP challenger in Green. The roster isn’t depleted in Golden State, although I admit it’s not as deep as its been in prior seasons. With Durant scheduled to return, the road to the Finals should be challenging but not grueling. The roster depth isn’t there for the Warriors, but the star power has never been stronger. The Warriors don’t need a lot from Durant, but if the team can put him in position to do what he does best as the playoffs deepen, then they’ll celebrate once the Finals are over.
Green: Pursuing Durant last summer definitely cost Golden State some roster depth, but I think it also may have put a mental strain on his new teammates. This isn’t the same Warriors team we’ve been accustomed to seeing over the last couple of seasons. Adding a player like Kevin Durant to your team can make you dependent on his heroics. Now, with him on the shelf, Golden State’s remaining three stars have to play a new brand of basketball that they’ve never played before simply because the reinforcements aren’t there. Guys like Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes, Leandro Barbosa and Marreese Speights were all critical to the team’s success since the 2014-2015 season. Adding Durant and losing those players might be an even trade-off to some, but once he goes down then what are you left with? After dropping the first two games since his injury, the Warriors are about to find out how hard things are in the NBA when you can’t trot out four All-Stars in your starting lineup.
