Kevin Durant Injury Update: Latest News and Comments on Thunder Star

Kevin Durant is one of the NBA's best players, but he will start the 2014-15 season on the sideline after suffering a foot injury.

The league's reigning MVP was forced to undergo surgery for a Jones fracture in his right foot after getting hurt in a preseason practice.

Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman provided a full look at the initial injury in a statement from Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti:

This six-to-eight week timeline puts a return likely at early December, which would represent close to one-quarter of the regular season. Bleacher Report's Injury Expert Will Carroll provided a bit more information on the potential return:

Carroll does note this could be a lingering issue if the recovery does not go completely according to plan.

On the plus side, there are already positive signs from Durant. According to Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman, Durant was out of a cast within the first two weeks:

While Thunder fans are hoping he could possibly return even sooner than projected, the five-time All-Star reminded everyone that he will remain patient. Speaking to the media for the first time since the injury, Durant explained his plan:

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I'm not going to rush it all. That's the one thing I don't want to do. I'm sure I'll feel better in two or three weeks, but definitely don't want to rush it and wind up hurting it even more. I'm taking my time with it. I'm just blessed it happened early in the season where I can get past it, and hopefully by December I'll be ready to play.

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It is hard to argue against this strategy, especially with such a long season. After seeing someone like Derrick Rose reinjure himself after returning, Durant wants to make sure he is at 100 percent before starting back onto the court.

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The question at this point is how the Thunder survive until he gets back. One likely scenario is that Russell Westbrook becomes not only the go-to option offensively but the only option. ESPN's Tom Haberstroh (subscription required) broke down how frequently the guard looked for his own shot when Durant was on the bench:

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Over the past three seasons, Westbrook has shot the ball 265 times in 356 minutes without Kevin Durant on the floor, which translates to a ludicrous rate of 26.8 shots per 36 minutes. To give you an idea how crazy high that is, Basketball-Reference tells us that no guard in NBA history has shot that frequently over a full season; only Wilt Chamberlain has topped it.

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On the other hand, ESPN's Amin Elhassan (subscription required) notes that the Thunder have "built a roster that is deep enough to weather the storm." He notes young wings, such as Perry Jones and Jeremy Lamb, can handle the responsibility for the short term.

That being said, everyone in Oklahoma City will be counting down the days before Durant is able to return. It is important to think long term with a player as talented as this, but the squad will hope it can survive without him for the immediate future.

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