Painful memories: Other Bay Area stars have been injured, too
Which way does your finger point? At the Warriors’ training staff ? At Steve Kerr? At Bob Myers, who said to blame him? At Klay Thompson and Kevon Looney for returning so quickly from injury?
At we, the media? At you, the fan, particularly those of you on social media? At Kevin Durant? Or, how about at nobody? Maybe we don’t have to blame anyone for the heartbreaking injury that Durant suffered in Game 5 of the NBA Finals in Toronto on Monday night. Because devastating injuries are a part of sports.
Of course, that last option isn’t part of the world that we live in right now. Not
with Twitter hot takes, and Charles Barkley Skyping criticism from his bathroom, and morning-television yelling shows to fill.
However, we should take a moment to hear from the man himself.
Posting a photo to Instagram from his hospital bed Wednesday, following surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon, Durant said this:
“Basketball is my biggest love and I wanted to be out there that night because that’s what I do. I wanted to help my teammates on our quest for the three peat. … It’s just the way things go in this game and I’m proud that I gave it all I physically could.”
Both Myers, the Warriors’ general manager, and Kerr, their head coach, have reiterated that the decision to play Durant in Game 5 was collaborative, cumulative and detailed.
“That collaboration included Kevin and his business partner, Rich Kleiman, our medical staff, his own outside secondopinion doctor,” Kerr said Wednesday. “Kevin checked all the boxes and he was cleared to play by everyone involved.”
Anyone who has had a serious injury knows another injury, at or near the site of the previous injury, is a real possibility. The Warriors say that an Achilles injury was not part of the discussion, not thought to be a threat. I’m going out on a limb and guessing that the medical staff involved was more knowledgeable than all the Twitter doctors, though I could be wrong.
No matter what someone like Barkley says — and he said, “I blame the Warriors for KD getting hurt and I don’t care what they say about it” — no one was going to pressure Durant into playing. Not with Kleiman by his side, a multimillion-dollar brand to protect and a career payday on the horizon. The modern athlete doesn’t bend to what the boss says even if it means shouldering the disgust of fans.
Just ask Kawhi Leonard, who broke with the San Antonio Spurs reportedly because they thought he could play and, after getting a second opinion, he decided he couldn’t. These days, athletes know to protect themselves.
The Warriors, as a franchise, have earned the benefit of the doubt. They have been very cautious with injuries. And though sports teams certainly have covered up or miscommunicated injuries over the years, it seems improbable that this team would do that in this day and age.
That doesn’t mean that Durant wasn’t feeling external pressure. Of course he was. It’s the NBA Finals; he’s arguably the best player in the world.
But from headlines or tweets? Not likely. Even a player who spends so much time on social media, who seems so aware of what is being said and written, is not going to make a reckless decision with his health.
“Everybody has great 20/20 hindsight,” Warriors guard Stephen Curry said. “In our cases as well as K and knowing him as a person and behind the scenes, we all want to play basketball. If we have an opportunity to play, or a chance to play, we want to play . ... Especially at this stage.
“So, you can waste time talking about the what-ifs and this and that. Injuries are tough, and they suck. They’re a part of our game. … Everybody putting their collective brains together to make the sound, smart decisions, you kind of just live with that.”
Remember when Jerry Rice tore his ACL in Week 1 in 1997 and shocked everyone by coming back on a Monday night game in Week 16? Only to reinjure his knee?
Remember when Joe Montana had back surgery in September 1986 and was back on the field in November? And then was leveled by the New York Giants’ Jim Burt and put out of a playoff game in the first half ?
Remember in 2002 when Robb Nen tried to get six outs to win a World Series for the Giants despite a seriously damaged rotator cuff ? And then never pitched again?
Oh, how we would be relitigating and pointing fingers, if those injuries happened in this era.
“I completely understand the world we live in,” Kerr said. “As Bob mentioned the other night, there’s going to be blame. There’s going to be fingerpointing. We understand that, and we accept that. This is what you sign up for when you get into coaching, general management, in the NBA.
“There’s all kinds of coverage, judgment, criticism — it’s all part of it. So, we accept that.”
It was a catastrophic injury for Durant. Painful to witness, anguishing for the team to process. It has forever changed a career, a league, a championship series.
But rather than point blame, use your finger to circle this statement Durant made Wednesday.
“I’m a hooper.”