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Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant is in the midst of recovering from the Achilles injury he suffered during the NBA Finals two months ago. While some people are optimistic that he can return as the same MVP-caliber player, one expert surgeon suggests otherwise.
In an interview with Ian Begley of SNYTV, Dr. John Wilckens, chief of sports medicine in the surgery division at Johns Hopkins Medicine said that he's pessimistic about Durant ever returning to 100 percent.
“I would be very surprised if he is the same player (after surgery). No matter how gifted the surgeon may be or how well the recovery goes, I don't think he's ever 100 percent (after surgery). Ninety-five percent (of strength returned in his surgically-repaired leg) is probably a good goal. For most of us, 95 percent is excellent, but when you're playing at the NBA level, championship level then maybe 95 percent isn't good enough.
Over the past couple of years, players who've suffered Achilles injuries were not as good as they were prior to it. Guys like Kobe Bryant, DeMarcus Cousins, and Wes Matthews were able to return to the court between 6-12 months, but their numbers were significantly down. Only NBA Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins was able to play the same, or even better after an Achilles tear.
Dr. Wilckens added that an Achilles injury not only affects one's leg but his also how his/her entire body responds after surgery and recovery.
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“(The injury) affects everything. Whether it's your jump shot, your defense, your ability to go down the lane, it affects your whole game – not just your running ability. I think 95 percent is a pretty safe number. Ninety-five percent of Durant is probably better than most players, but he's not 100 percent.”
Other surgeons have said that although there's a slight chance that Durant could return to the NBA next season, the improvement won't happen until the second year after the injury took place.
If that's the case, then Durant will be fully recovered before the 2021-22 season, the third year of his four-year contract. The Nets obviously wouldn't want that, but they also wouldn't want to rush KD's return, as they've seen what happened to him when he forced to play in the Finals even though he wasn't 100 percent healthy.
We'll just have to wait and see if the surgeon is right, or if Durant can defy the odds and reclaim his status as one of the best basketball players in the world.
We'll definitely know soon enough.
