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Kevin Durant goes down with right ankle sprain vs. Warriors
The Oklahoma City Thunder have been a resurgent unit since the returns of both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. After a loss in Durant's season opener Dec. 2 against the New Orleans Pelicans, the Thunder had rattled off seven straight wins to enter Thursday night's game against the West-leading Golden State Warriors with a 12-13 record and just out of a playoff spot. The turnaround has been a reminder that OKC is a legitimate title contender when fully healthy.
However, a stroke of bad luck right before halftime of Thursday's game could derail that resurgence. On the final possession of the half, Durant drove to the basket looking for a buzzer-beater before colliding with the defending Marreese Speights. Durant was called for a charge on the play, but the real damage came as his right foot — the same one with the stress fracture that kept Durant out of the season's first 17 games — came down on Speights. Durant turned his ankle in the process, fell to the ground and left the game. Take a look:
Reserve Perry Jones took Durant's place to open the second half, with the reigning MVP not returning from the locker room to join his teammates on the bench. TNT's Lewis Johnson reported that Durant had X-rays taken on-site at Oracle Arena, but it appears that it was just a precaution. The Thunder later announced that Durant had suffered a mild ankle sprain and would not return on Thursday.
Durant also spoke to reporters after the Thunder's 114-109 loss:
The Thunder play at Staples Center vs. the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night but will have a day off before returning to Oklahoma to face the Pelicans on Sunday. They are also part of the NBA's Christmas Day schedule with a marquee game at the San Antonio Spurs, so it figures that everyone around the league would like to see Durant return by next Thursday.
Westbrook is capable of leading the Thunder in Durant's absence, but an extended stay on the sidelines or even a nagging injury would be an issue for the team over the course of this season. To make matters worse, Durant was having his best game of the year prior to going down, scoring 30 points on 10-of-13 shooting in 19 minutes.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at efreeman_ysports@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
