USA TODAY International Edition
Kevin Durant comes back strong
For someone who thought less than six weeks ago that he’d broken his leg, this wasn’t half bad.
Kevin Durant, as evidenced by his plus- 22 outing in the Golden State Warriors’ 123- 101 win over the New Orleans Pelicans at Oracle Arena on Saturday night, is not only healthy again but still very good at this game of basketball.
The mid- range pull- up, with that impossible- to- guard sweep through leading up to it, was still there on this night where he finished with 16 points on 6- of- 15 shooting. The fluid motion on drives, those long strides that cover so much ground, was as effective as ever. The defensive impact hasn’t gone anywhere, either, that pride he takes in hitting the glass ( a game- high 10 rebounds in all) and pushing the tempo as a playmaker for the league’s best offense ( six assists).
And most of all, after Durant’s worst fears about a leg break weren’t realized and he had to recover from the Grade 2 MCL sprain and tibial bone bruise of his left knee suffered Feb. 28., the smile is still there too.
Even when the rest of the Warriors might have been grimacing.
Early in the fourth quarter, as the Stephen Curry- less Warriors pulled away from a Pelicans team that was without its ferocious frontcourt of Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins, Durant flew past David West’s high screen and was bumped by big man Alexis Ajinca as he barreled through the lane. He was like a train off the tracks, falling to his right and planting that left leg that, not so long ago, had sparked so much speculation the Warriors’ title hopes were in jeopardy.
No one could have blamed everyone from Warriors owner Joe Lacob on down for being nervous. But Durant — after getting help from two teammates to get off his backside — rose with a smile and headed to the free- throw line.
Translation after one game with Durant back in the fold: The Warriors, winners of 14 consecutive games and an NBA- best 6614 overall, stand alone as frontrunners heading into the playoffs. With all involved well aware of lesson learned with Durant before Zaza Pachulia’s head sidelined him against the Washington Wizards, he’s back just in time to make a great team even better.
As surviving without a superstar goes, you can’t do much better than the Warriors did without Durant. This went well beyond winning games — 15 of 19 in all during that stretch — and all the way into defiant dominance.
And now, with Durant back to his old self after just one game, the Warriors are looking as unstoppable as ever.