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Will Kevin Durant Ever Be the Same Again?

By TechCrunch - TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2017 - Day 2, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62995060
June 20, 2019

Watching Kevin Durant play for both Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors was an experience unlike anything else. The 7-feet forward was in a league of his own in most matches and his two NBA titles, two Finals MVPs, and ten NBA All Star appearances speak volumes about the type of player that he is.

Betting enthusiasts simply love Durant because backing him and his team always equals money. The Golden State Warriors with him and Curry will definitely go down as one of the best teams in history and also as one of the most reliable teams to bet on.

This is because almost all deposits that bettors placed on the Warriors winning their matches came to fruition. Deposit made through payment options such as moneybookers were doubled and tripled when betting enthusiasts backed the Warriors in the match winner, handicap and outright winner markets. Up until their 2019 heartbreak defeat in the NBA final, they were the most profitable team for NBA bettors.

However, it seems like this will no longer be the case. The Golden State Warriors band is now definitely coming apart and one of the biggest reasons for this is Kevin Durant’s horrific Achilles tendon injury.

 

Almost Impossible to Return to Previous Levels

The bad news for betting enthusiasts and Kevin Durant supporters is that Achilles tendon injuries are also termed as career-enders. The normal recovery time for an injury of this type is 10 months, but many doctors say that a more optimal recovery time frame is a year.

There are tons of negative effects related to an Achilles tendon injury and some of them will make your blood run cold if you are an avid Kevin Durant supporter.

The first and most depressing effect is the fact that Kevin Durant will probably never be the same player again. There are many examples of players who have sustained this type of injury and never returned to their pre-injury levels. Players such as Brandon Jennings, Kobe Bryant, Chauncey Billups, and Elton Brand all sustained Achilles tendon injuries and all of them returned to basketball as a shadow of their former selves.

In fact, Durant should look no further than his Warriors team mate DeMarcus Cousins who was an All-Star player four times in a row only to see how an Achilles tendon injury can stall a career dramatically. The fact that Cousins is still considered as a valuable player in whom big teams were interested should be cause for optimism for Durant, but Cousins average of 16.3 points and 8.2 rebounds in only 30 games this season is way below his previous average.

 

Cause for Other Injuries

Another ill effect that Achilles tendon injuries have on players is weakening the player’s overall physique. Lots of muscle injuries such as those occurring in calf muscles and hamstrings are common after a player has sustained an Achilles tendon injury and there are also many instances of players developing sports hernia.

The fact that Kevin Durant is on the wrong side of 30 certainly doesn’t help here as the younger the injured person is, the bigger the chances that they will come closer to a full recovery. Add to that the fact that Durant will be back at least 10 months from now and maybe miss the whole next season and you have a 32-year old player coming from recovery and trying to play on the same level as before. It just doesn’t seem likely that he will ever be able to reach the same heights again.

 

His Game Will Suffer

The final and most damning effect that this injury will have on Durant is related to how he plays basketball.  He will no longer be able to do his quick jerky movements and he will no longer be capable of playing at his usual fast pace.

Furthermore, any team snapping Durant as a free agent this summer will also know that there is no chance in the world that Durant will be able to play a full season. What is more likely is that the team which acquires him will play him in fewer games and he will play less minutes, with the goal being to keep him fit for the playoffs.

Jun 20, 2019ballineurope
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