Suns Are No Longer True Title Contenders

Kevin Durant’s injury puts Phoenix in a very difficult spot.

Kevin Durant will miss at least three weeks with an ankle sprain, the Suns announced Thursday. Durant sprained his left ankle before what was meant to be his home debut with Phoenix on Wednesday. According to the Suns, KD will be reevaluated in three weeks before his potential return. Here are three thoughts on Durant’s upcoming absence …

1. This is the new normal. I was bullish on the Suns’ chances as title contenders when they acquired KD, his injury history notwithstanding. And Phoenix should obviously still have made the trade 100 out of 100 times. The reality, though, is Durant should be expected to miss time every year over the life of his contract, which has three seasons remaining. KD has not played anything close to a full season since 2019. Since then, he’s torn his Achilles, and missed time due to hamstring and multiple knee injuries. It’s the risk Phoenix took on in gaining the former MVP, and it’s a worthy one. Durant being able to stay healthy enough to play four consecutive playoff rounds is a legitimate question, however. And this latest malady, which took place in warmups, is concerning for Phoenix’s title hopes this season and beyond.

2. The Suns may not have enough cushion. Phoenix has the third-toughest remaining strength of schedule, per Tankathon. The Suns entered Friday with a three-game lead on the fifth-place Clippers, who have only the 16th-toughest schedule to close out the season. The difference between the four and five spots is home court in the first round of the playoffs, and the battle for that spot will be fierce over the last four weeks of the season. Golden State is also only 3½ games behind Phoenix. The Suns, meanwhile, are a little bit thinner after the Durant trade, and Chris Paul and Devin Booker have dealt with injuries this season. The Suns’ margins are thin on the court and schedule-wise. Phoenix can’t exactly coast through the playoffs and hope Durant is ready to go by Game 1. The team will now need to jockey for position without its best player, adding another layer of complication to this regular season.

3. The Nuggets should be the West favorites. Phoenix had a claim to best team in the West with Durant, but now the Nuggets firmly occupy the top spot. Denver has raced out ahead of everyone else in the conference standings. While the Nuggets have their flaws, they don’t seem to be as serious as their rivals. The Grizzlies are dealing with Ja Morant’s absence and injuries in the frontcourt. The Warriors can’t win on the road. Durant is out in Phoenix. The Kings’ defense is in the bottom third of the league. The Clippers are inconsistent. Everything is setting up for the Nuggets to make a deep playoff run. And short of more injuries to their core players, the team also seemingly won’t have many excuses if it falls short of a conference finals.