Kevin Durant Reflects on Knee Injuries as Jokic Faces Similar Setback
NEW YORK (AP) — Kevin Durant, now with the Phoenix Suns, revisited his past injury woes following Nikola Jokic’s recent misfortune, drawing parallels between their experiences. Durant’s tenure with the Brooklyn Nets concluded after he was sidelined due to an injury eerily similar to Jokic’s current situation.
Durant noted, “One thing I don’t want to see with Nikola is like, they started calling me ‘injury prone’ after that, but hopefully they don’t start with him because it’s one of those freak injuries that you can’t really control.” His comments came after the Rockets defeated the Nets 120-96 during Durant’s return to Brooklyn.
On Monday night, Jokic—renowned as a three-time NBA MVP—suffered a knee injury in Miami. The incident occurred when his Denver teammate, Spencer Jones, inadvertently stepped on his foot during a defensive play against Miami’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. Jokic’s knee buckled, leading him to collapse on the court.
The Denver Nuggets announced that Jokic would be re-evaluated in four weeks, offering a timeline that suggests a quicker return compared to Durant’s previous injuries.
Durant’s history of knee injuries includes a medial collateral ligament sprain in January 2022 after teammate Bruce Brown fell into his knee, causing him to miss 21 games. A year later, in January 2023, on the same court in Miami, Durant suffered another knee injury when Jimmy Butler, then with the Heat, fell into him. This incident led to his trade to the Phoenix Suns, following a 20-game absence.
In contrast, Jokic appears to have sustained a hyperextension, which might allow for a swifter recovery. Durant expressed relief over the prognosis, stating, “So it’s good to see it’s only four weeks and it’s not anything too big. It wasn’t an MCL sprain or Level 2, it felt like it was just a tweak and he’s going to be back out there soon. He’s great for the game and you want to see the best players on the floor at all times.”
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