Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Kevin Durant has not played for a month and there are speculation the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player might be ruled out for the remainder of the 2014-15 NBA season.
Durant, who has not played since their 104-89 win over the Dallas Mavericks on February 19, was held out of practice on Thursday after experiencing soreness in his ailing right foot.
Durant underwent surgery four weeks ago to eliminate soreness in his surgically-repaired right foot, but is still experiencing troubles over the past several days. While Brooks did not specifically mention it, most analysts are saying that the superstar forward is experiencing major setback in his recovery.
Brooks recently announced that Durant could return in one to two weeks, but the Thunder coach said on Thursday that he cannot provide a new timeline as they are taking a cautious approach.
"I don't know that yet," Brooks said of providing a timeline for Durant's return. "But with all of our players' injuries we'll always take the best interest of the players and always have a cautious approach."
The Thunder have 14 games left in the season and are in a close race with the New Orleans Pelicans for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference, putting the Thunder in a difficult situation.
They need to decide if they want to take a cautious approach and run risk of missing the playoffs or play Durant to improve their playoff chances despite the possibility of aggravating his ailing foot.
Earlier this month, Durant said that he wants to return to play again this season, but also added that he will not rush his return if he knows he is not yet 100 percent ready to make a comeback.
"I'm more so just focused on trying to get this pain out of it and coming back when I'm ready," Durant said. "When I'm 100 percent ready and not trying to force it or play with pain. Just trying to conquer this little stage I'm in right now, which is getting this thing right, working as hard as I can in the weight room and on the court."
Durant averaged 25.4 points to go along with 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 27 games this season.
