Nearly seven weeks after he was traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Phoenix Suns, Kevin Durant finally made his home debut with his new team. He looked very much like a player who had only suited up three times since Jan. 8 due to various injuries, as he finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists on 5 of 18 from the field in the Suns' 107-100 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
"Sometimes you can want it too bad," Durant said. "A couple of those shots, I definitely was rushing and trying to get it all back at once. I can get in my own way sometimes, thinking too much."
Durant was already sidelined with an MCL sprain when the blockbuster deal to send him from the Nets to the Suns went through at the Feb. 9 trade deadline. Nearly a month later, he made his Suns debut during a road trip and suited up three times -- all wins in which the Suns' offense looked unstoppable. But just as it seemed like the new-look Suns were about to start rolling, he sprained his ankle in a freak accident during pre-game warmups ahead of what was supposed to be his home debut on March 8.
Finally, after multiple delays, Durant was able to take the floor in Phoenix on Wednesday. Head coach Monty Williams tried to get him going early by running the opening set for him, but Durant missed a mid-range jumper. That turned out to be a bit of foreshadowing, as the normally automatic Durant struggled to find the range all night long. His 5 of 18 shooting performance was not only his least efficient night of the season, it was just the 17th time in 982 regular season games that he shot under 28 percent from the field on at least 15 field goal attempts, per Stathead.
"You look at the shooting numbers, you're like, that's not Kevin," Suns head coach Monty Williams said. "But I think the way he stayed with it, when he hit the 3s in the third quarter, like, that's Kevin. He's not gonna run from those types of shots." (Durant actually hit two 3s in the fourth quarter, but the point remains.)
The good news for the Suns is they got the win anyway, and Durant is unlikely to have any shooting performances worse than this one. He also still has six regular season games to shake off any remaining rust before the playoffs, which will get underway on April 15.
As for the postseason, the Suns are locked in a battle with the Los Angeles Clippers for the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference. At 41-35, they hold a half-game lead over the Clippers and are 2-1 up in the series between the clubs with one game left to play on the final day of the regular season.
