The Golden State Warriors led by the Splash Bros. of Stephen Cury and Klay Thompson have forced a game 6 on their home floor but still took a major loss. In his return, Kevin Durant reinjured his right leg in what the Warriors fear is a torn Achilles tendon.
Durant re-injured his leg in the second quarter of the 106-105 Warriors win. A tweak of his leg when he moved against Serge Ibaka of the Toronto Raptors’ immediately sent him to the floor.
Ramona Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN report Warriors brass believe the MRI will confirm an Achilles tear.
After the game, a tearful Warriors, general manager Bob Myers told to press an MRI will be performed Tuesday while confirming the Achilles was the issue.
“It’s an Achilles injury,” Myers said in his presser. “I don’t know the extent of it. He’ll have an MRI tomorrow. Prior to coming back he went through four weeks with a medical team, and it was thorough, and it was experts and multiple MRIs and multiple doctors, and we felt good about the process.”
During his press conference, Myers confirmed KD was cleared and it was a collaborative decision. “I don’t believe there’s anybody to blame, but I understand in this world and if you have to, you can blame me. I run our basketball operations department.”
While the Warriors continued to battle on the floor, Durant left Scotiabank Arena. After the win, he shared a message on Instagram to express the pride he had in his team for completing the job.
“I’m hurting deep in the soul right now I can’t lie but seeing my brothers get this win was like taking a shot of tequila, i got new life lol,” Durant shared.
From the desk of Kevin Durant’s Instagram story. pic.twitter.com/LmRh0zLnmg
— Shawn Grant (@SHAWNxGRANT) June 11, 2019
As he was injured, Durant was cheered by some Raptors fans and waved off the court, which was stopped by Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka showing respect for the Warriors star. DeMarcus Cousins was asked about the cheering in the postgame.
“So trash. But like I said, when we’re behind the lines, it’s superstar athletes. Not human beings,” Cousins stated It’s always about what we do between those lines. That’s it. That’s all that ever matters. And then once we lash out and do human type things, then we’re considered bad guys.”
Prior to the game, reports emerged stating Durant did not have the best practice, prompting some to wonder was it too soon to bring the superstar back.
Many of spoke out for KD including his mother, Drake, and players.
For ALL of you who question my son as a Man, question his Heart, question his Integrity and question his LOVE for the game of basketball, you DON’T know him. He has a heart of a true Warrior! This too shall pass. God Bless you ALL. pic.twitter.com/y0qcQ5Boga
— Wanda Durant (@MamaDurant) June 11, 2019
“Praying for our brother.”
Drake showed love to Kevin Durant following his injury in Game 5. pic.twitter.com/d4bS3pM4I2
— ESPN (@espn) June 11, 2019
Proud of all the players on @Raptors & @warriors banding together to support #KevinDurant No one wants to see anyone get injured we are all humans first. @KDTrey5 showed tonight what it is to have heart & be a true team player. We are praying for a quick recovery @NBA #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/4uLFK2SI86
— TheBillRussell (@RealBillRussell) June 11, 2019
In the win, Curry had 31 points, Thompsons 26. The series shifts back to Oakland on Thursday.