Kevin Durant confirmed on Wednesday that he ruptured his Achilles tendon. The Golden State Warriors superstar posted a photo of himself on Instagram in a hospital bed, confirming the worst fears about his injury but also announcing he's already undergone corrective surgery.
The severity of Durant's latest setback comes as no surprise to anyone following the aftermath of Game 5 of the NBA Finals, when Golden State general manager Bob Myers, fighting back tears, said that the two-time reigning Finals MVP suffered an Achilles injury, and subsequent reporting from ESPN's Ramona Shelburne revealed that the Warriors were expecting to learn he'd ruptured his Achilles upon further examination by team doctors.
Also on Wednesday, Golden State coach Steve Kerr reiterated that had the Warriors been made aware that Durant risked additional serious injury by playing in Game 5, they certainly wouldn't have permitted him to return to the floor.
“Once Kevin was cleared to play, he was comfortable with that and we were comfortable with that, so the Achilles came as a complete shock,” he said, per Chris Montano of Def Pen Hoops. “I don't know what else to add to that other than had we known this was a possibility, that this was even in the realm of possibility, there's no way we ever would have allowed Kevin to come back.”
Durant suffered the injury planting hard off his right leg while isolating against Serge Ibaka on the right wing early in the second quarter of Game 5. He'd missed Golden State's previous nine playoff games after straining his calf in Game 5 of his team's second-round series against the Houston Rockets.
The Warriors trail the Toronto Raptors 3-2 in the Finals. Game 6 is on Thursday at Oracle Arena.
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