The Golden State Warriors' dramatic 106-105 win over the Toronto Raptors on Monday night was overshadowed by Kevin Durant going down once again with what is believed to be a torn right Achilles tendon. Normally, a team would be all smiles or at least giving off vibes of relief after keeping their NBA Finals hopes alive, but that was not the case with the Warriors last night. Instead, they were giving off vibes of frustration and sadness as a result of losing their best player for the season and possibly beyond. The post-game press conference held by Warriors GM Bob Meyers perfectly encapsulated that frustration and sadness as he was holding back tears talking about Durant.
Before I begin explaining why the Warriors screwed Durant, let me first say that anyone questioning Durant's toughness or lack of willingness to play in the NBA Finals is a MORON. As one who has gotten to know high level basketball players as part of my job covering Cal hoops for Rivals.com, I can confirm that these guys will play at all costs and never want to miss a game. Basketball is who they are. If you are saying a guy like Durant isn't tough for not coming back earlier, you either have a negative agenda or you don't know high level basketball players. Or both.
With that mini tirade out of the way, let me begin another tirade if you want to call it that. The Warriors screwed Durant. Plain and simple. I'm not saying it's any one individual's fault. I don't agree that it should all fall on Meyers' shoulders, though I applaud him for being willing to accept the blame. That takes courage on his part.
The Warriors as a collective whole screwed Durant. The coaching staff, front office, medical staff, and even teammates all played some role in pressuring Durant to return when it was clear to all of us that his return was being rushed. There were reports earlier that if this wasn't the playoffs, Durant would be out for several weeks, indicating that the Warriors knew this was a really serious injury.
Even more cynically, I think it's pretty clear that Durant's injury was worse than what the Warriors were letting on. They said calf strain, but the vibe was that it was something much more serious like a torn Achilles. Meyers insists that it was a calf injury the first time and that this time around, it's an Achilles. I have a really hard time buying that. While I'm no medical doctor, I'm pretty familiar with the severity of sports injuries and the whole time the vibe I got was an Achilles. As soon as Meyers coughed up that it was an Achilles, I thought to myself: "That's what it was the first time, too."
The Warriors knew they were playing with fire by bringing Durant back and yet they rolled the dice anyways. Sometimes when you play with fire you get burned and that's exactly what happened to the Warriors. Actually, it was Durant who got burned, which makes it all the more tragic. As a result of the Warriors' reckless decision to put Durant in harms way, they may have cost him his NBA career. A torn Achilles is no joke. It's like the kiss of death for NBA players. He may never come back from this, which is why the Warriors should feel like trash right now.
If you think I'm being too harsh, don't take it from me. Take it from Meyers. His body language was that of one who knew his organization screwed up. That's why he was crying. If this was another freak accident, he wouldn't have come to the podium to address the media. The fact that he addressed the media at all indicates the Warriors knew going in it was a risk to play Durant. They did not believe Durant was fully healed or anywhere close to full strength, which puts the blame squarely on them.
The only way to defend the Warriors is to say that Durant really wanted to play and that if he wants to go out there and ball, he should be allowed to do as he pleases. The problem I have with that is you have to see the bigger picture in matters like this. One championship isn't worth sacrificing someone's career. It just isn't. Especially when you've already won three titles in four years.
On top of that, the Warriors know how to win without Durant. At this point of the series, even if Durant could play, you could argue it would be better to not play him over concerns of him messing with their flow or getting off to a rusty start. The fact that he came out on fire doesn't change this. The Warriors have enough firepower to win without Durant and their lack of confidence in themselves to do so continues to baffle me.
The bottom line here is the Warriors decided to sacrifice Kevin Durant's career to get a one point win in an NBA Finals that they are probably going to lose no matter what. Is anyone's health or career worth that? The answer is no and the Warriors know it. End of story.
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