KD may sit until playoffs after injury

Kevin Durant’s ankle injury reportedly has the Suns concerned that he could miss the remainder of the regular season.

The All-Star forward twisted his left ankle when he slipped during warmups Wednesday night in Phoenix. Durant was ruled out before the Suns’ 132101 win over the Thunder.

There is concern within the Suns organization that Durant has a Grade 2 sprain, which would keep him out between four and six weeks, according to the Arizona Republic. If Durant is out for more than four weeks, he could potentially miss the start of the playoffs, which begin on April 15.

Durant, who was acquired from the Nets on Feb. 9, left Footprint Center in a large walking boot. He wasn’t in the locker room for postgame media access and was scheduled to have an MRI exam Thursday.

The two-time NBA Finals MVP was going up for a layup during warm-ups when he landed awkwardly on his left ankle. Video footage showed him falling to the floor. Although Durant continued warming up after the injury, he was ultimately ruled out for the home contest.

Durant had returned to the court a week earlier in a victory over the Hornets following a 52-day absence due to a right MCL sprain. He suffered that knee injury on Jan. 8 at Miami and missed 20 games.

During his three games with the Suns, Durant averaged 26.7 points and 7.3 rebounds.

The Suns, who are 3-0 with Durant in the lineup, have 16 games remaining before their regular-season finale on April 9, beginning with a home game against the Kings on Saturday. Phoenix is currently in the No. 4 spot in the Western Conference with a 37-29 record.

After the game Wednesday, Suns head coach Monty Williams said the team did not have “anything official to report” about Durant’s injury.

“Right now it’s just an ankle sprain, and we don’t have anything official to report,” Williams said.

“We’ll just have to wait and see how he responds to treatment and we’ll probably get more imaging just to make sure everybody’s on the same page.”

Suns point guard Devin Booker added that Durant was “in good spirits” after the injury.

“It is what it is, unfortunate thing, but you know, nothing serious,” Booker said. “Control what you can control. The situation happened. He’s in good spirits and that’s all that matters to me so, you know, the rehab process starts now.”

Durant had been expected to make his home debut on Wednesday.