Suns GM James Jones Shares Encouraging Update on Kevin Durant

James Jones downplays Kevin Durant's injury making it clear the superstar forward will be back for the Phoenix Suns come playoff time.

Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant is currently dealing with a left ankle sprain, sidelining him for at least three weeks before he's re-evaluated. 

Though discouraging, Suns general manager James Jones shared that if the injury happened in the postseason, Durant would be suiting up. 

"If the playoffs started today, he'd be out there,” James Jones said to the Arizona Republic. “He'd be struggling a little bit."

The Suns are making sure they don’t risk Durant’s health in the regular season so he can be fully prepared to be on the court come playoff time. After their Monday night showdown with the Golden State Warriors, the Suns will have 14 games left in the regular season. 

An exact three-week timetable would put Durant back in the lineup with six games left before the postseason began. 

Durant has a lengthy injury history since tearing his Achilles in the 2019 NBA Finals, so it's best to give him time to heal now regardless if he would suit up in a more meaningful contest. 

Phoenix currently sits as the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference.

Durant has only played three games for the Suns, which is certainly limited time to build a strong rapport with the rest of his new teammates. Other threats in the West including the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers and the Warriors have all had relatively the same core for the past few seasons.

If Durant misses the entirety of the regular season, would it be reasonable to expect Phoenix's starting lineup to move flawlessly when it matters most? 

The good sign is that in the three games Durant did play in, Phoenix went undefeated and the team seemed to be clicking on all cylinders. Durant played exceptionally well during this short time frame headlined by a 37 point performance against the Dallas Mavericks.

The duo of him and Devin Booker produced the fourth-most points by a tandem in their first three games in NBA history. 

Though injured now, a healthy Durant in the playoffs may be all that Phoenix needs to reach their championship aspirations.