When the Golden State Warriors hit the court for game one of the Western Conference Finals, DeMarcus Cousins nor Kevin Durant will be in their lineup.
Both All-Stars suffered potential injuries that initially looked like they could keep them out an extended period of time. Cousins suffered a partially torn quadriceps when he was chasing down a loose ball in game 2 of the Warriors’ first round playoff series against the Clippers. When Durant grabbed his lower leg after turning up court after hitting a jump shot, fears of a torn Achilles were abound. However an examination revealed that it was a calf strain.
It was expected that both players would return should the team advance to the conference finals, however Warriors head coach Steve Kerr’s comments after practice cast some doubt on that.
Via Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Kerr said that neither player was cleared for on court activity and both of them were not close to returning.
Without Cousins and Durant, particularly KD, the offensive load will fall back primarily on Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, something these two players who have shown in the past they are more than capable of handling.
