The Houston Rockets suffered a Game 1 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in their Western Conference Playoffs series, with Luke Kennard and LeBron James leading the way for the home team.
Making things challenging for Houston was the absence of their top star, Kevin Durant, who was out of the lineup. Durant was dealing with a knee injury he suffered during his team’s practice last week, keeping him sidelined for the first playoff game.
In his absence, multiple teammates stepped up, including Alperen Sengun, who had 19 points and eight boards, and Jabari Smith Jr., who achieved a double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds. However, having Durant on the floor would’ve helped, and possibly allowed Houston to take Game 1 in Los Angeles.
On Monday, additional news arrived regarding KD’s status for his team’s next game, and the latest update may not have given Rockets fans the sort of news they were hoping for.
According to ESPN’s NBA insider, Shams Charania, Durant is dealing with a deep patellar tendon bruise, which he suffered in practice as he was chasing a loose ball and collided with a teammate. He said the injury has led to swelling and pain and has also impacted KD’s range of motion.
Charania shared that the Rockets are “optimistic” that he’ll return “as soon as Game 2.” However, he said Durant’s status for Game 2 is currently “up in the air” depending on how his leg responds to the bruise in the coming days.
Ahead of the first-round series, the Houston Rockets were listed as significant favorites to bounce a banged-up Lakers team. Los Angeles is dealing with injuries to their starters, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, who had season-ending injuries weeks ago.
However, the Rockets were likely odds-on favorites because of the belief that Kevin Durant would play and be a factor for his team in the series. While they’re talented without him in the lineup, this team made a huge move to trade for him last season for this sort of postseason run.
Without him, it seems to give LeBron a golden opportunity to help the Lakers extend their postseason and get Reaves and Luka back on the court.
KD previously won the only championship of his career with the Golden State Warriors alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, under coach Steve Kerr. He’s still seeking another at 37, and that window is closing.
Game 2 occurs Tuesday night in Los Angeles, with Rockets fans and NBA fans hoping to see a Durant vs. LeBron showdown, rather than a shorthanded Houston team struggling and possibly falling to 0-2 in the series.