Since entering the NBA in 2007, Kevin Durant has established himself as one of the best players in NBA history. The 6-foot-10 scoring machine has compiled averages of 27.0 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 849 regular-season games with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors.
As all superstars do, Durant takes his game to another level once the postseason starts. The Maryland native has playoff averages of 29.1 points, 7.7 boards and 4.0 dimes. Durant is a two-time NBA champion and two-time Finals MVP. He's also played in 10 All-Star games, won four scoring titles and was named the 2013-14 regular-season MVP with the Thunder.
Durant has scored 22,940 points thus far in his career, which is good for 31st on the NBA's all-time scoring list. However, KD would be much higher on the list if he didn't suffer some serious injuries during his Hall of Fame career.
After winning the MVP Award in 2013-14 by averaging 32.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists, Durant was eager to repeat in 2014-15. Unfortunately, the “Slim Reaper” only played in 27 games during the 2014-15 campaign because of a foot injury.
Durant first underwent successful surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his right foot in October of 2014. He missed the first 17 games of the 2014-15 campaign before making his season debut in December. KD scored 27 points against the New Orleans Pelicans on Dec. 2, 2014. It appeared all was well again in OKC.
Then, the Thunder's worse fear came true. Durant needed a second surgery in February of 2015 to address “increased soreness” in his surgically repaired right foot. “Durantula” wound up undergoing bone graft surgery on his right foot in March and was done for the rest of the 2014-15 season. Durant finished the campaign with averages of 25.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists.
Some people were concerned that Kevin Durant wasn't going to be elite again after his foot injury. Boy were those pundits wrong.
In 2015-16, Durant averaged 28.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists, showing the entire world he was still the best scorer in the game. The 2015-16 campaign wound up being KD's last season with the Thunder, as he signed with the Warriors during the summer of 2016.
Durant's first year with the Warriors was going smoothly until a March game against the Washington Wizards. The former Texas Longhorn sustained a Grade 2 MCL sprain and tibial bone bruise in his left knee after teammate Zaza Pachulia fell into his knee.
Durant missed 19 games before returning on April. 8, 2017 against the Pelicans. While KD did miss two games in the 2017 playoffs for the Warriors, he played in 15 total contests and put up 28.5 points. Durant won the 2017 Finals MVP Award by averaging 35.2 points, 8.2 boards and 5.4 assists against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
KD and the Warriors won their second straight title in 2018 over the Cavs. Durant averaged 28.8 points in the Finals to capture his second straight Finals MVP trophy.
Durant and the Dubs were looking to win three rings in a row in 2019. Unfortunately, KD suffered a calf injury against the Houston Rockets in Game 5 of the second round of the 2019 playoffs. He missed nine consecutive games before coming back for Game 5 of the Finals versus the Toronto Raptors.
We all know what tragically happened next.
Durant tore his Achilles tendon in Game 5 and underwent surgery. The former Rookie of the Year signed with the Brooklyn Nets in the summer, ending his three-year run with Golden State.
Durant was always going to miss the entire 2019-20 season recovering from his Achilles tear. When he makes his Nets debut in 2020-21, though, Brooklyn will be legitimate title contenders with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the way.
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