When Kevin Durant went down with a bone bruise and MCL sprain, many assumed he would miss the remainder of the regular season. The Warriors have remained optimistic about Durant returning before the postseason, though. Durant will aim to return Saturday against the New Orleans Pelicans, reports ESPN’s Marc Stein:
The Golden State Warriors have targeted Saturday night’s home game against the New Orleans Pelicans as the return date for Kevin Durant provided that the All-Star forward experiences no setbacks in the final stages of his recovery from a sprained left knee, league sources told ESPN.
Sources told ESPN on Monday that Durant’s excellent progress since suffering a sprained MCL and bruised tibia at Washington on Feb. 28 has him on course to play in Golden State’s final three regular-season games.
…
The 28-year-old has begun to play in 3-on-3 and 4-on-4 contact situations with teammates in addition to his individual workouts since the club announced Wednesday ?that Durant has “made very good progress” in his recovery.
(UPDATE: 4/6/17) The Warriors confirmed Kevin Durant is cleared to return to practice and is targeting Saturday as his return day.
Kevin Durant has been cleared to return to full team practices. Barring any setbacks, it is anticipated he will play in Saturday's game. pic.twitter.com/uE2SfJnc9j
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) April 6, 2017
Prior to his injury, Durant was widely considered to be a top-five MVP candidate. On the season, Durant has averaged 25.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.6 blocks and 1.1 steals per game on 53.7 percent shooting from the field and 37.8 percent shooting from outside.
The Warriors initially had some struggles without Durant, but have found ways to win without him; the team is currently on an 11-game winning streak.
Curry, who was named Western Conference Player of the Week on Monday, has stepped up offensively in Durant’s absence. In March, Curry averaged 25.5 points and 7.5 assists per game. In his lone April game, he scored 42 points on 15-22 shooting (9-14 from three-point range).
