Durant's Suns career may be over! Ankle injury echoes how Phoenix fans remember him?

Durant won't play in the Suns' final regular-season game, and his Suns career may be over. On April 12, Beijing time, Suns reporter Doug Haller wrote an article lamenting that it is not easy to pick the most representative highlight moments from Durant's more than two seasons with the Suns, because there are too many moments to choose from.

In a game against the Bulls in January 2024, Durant hit a game-winning jumper that looked like Jordan was possessed when he was in the air; In February, he surpassed 30,000 career scoring totals, becoming one of only eight players in NBA history to reach this milestone. Last month, he scored 19 points in the final quarter against the Clippers to lead the team to a comeback.

In 145 regular-season games for the Suns, Durant scored a total of 3,887 points. Despite his age, his legendary scoring touch has never faded. As long as he gets a shot, everyone is convinced that he can hit. The most recent one is even more evidenced by the picture -

On March 8, with 1.4 seconds left in the regular season, the Suns trailed the Denver Nuggets 122-125. Suns forward Royce O'Neale served from the right touchline and crossed the ball to Booker. Three Nuggets players quickly wrapped up Booker, who was quick to pass the ball to Durant in the bottom corner, facing the Suns' bench.

Durant made a decisive shot and hit the whistle. Behind him, six teammates stood expectantly. Center Richards held up three fingers, rookie Iguodalo raised two, point guard Gillespie clenched his fists, and veteran Tyus Jones clutched a white towel.

All four are expecting Durant to make the shot, while the other two, Bol Bol and Monte Morris, are also sure it will score.

The Suns posted photos of the moment on social media. Before the most recent game, Bol sat in front of his locker, looked at the picture, smiled and said, "I raised my hand before he even made a shot." I mean, this is Kevin [Durant], an open three-pointer, just as solid as a layup. ”

Then look at Monte Morris in a black T-shirt, he's already starting to celebrate. The veteran, who missed the day's game with a back injury, started shouting: "In!" Entered! ”

In front of his locker, Morris recalled: "It was an amazing feeling that he got an empty seat in the bottom corner. He shot at the right pace and I was like, 'He's going to score this ball!' ’”

That's what Durant has been capable of throughout his career, and Phoenix is no exception. His shooting skills are top-notch, and he's a highlight that fans can rely on almost every night. The 36-year-old is averaging 26.6 points per game while shooting 52.7 percent from the field and 43 percent from three-point range.

However, his time at Phoenix may be coming to an end.

On March 31, the Suns lost the game at home against the Houston Rockets. In the third quarter, Durant grabbed a defensive rebound and pushed quickly, and when he slowed down and was about to reorganize the offense, he accelerated to cut inside and stepped on the foot of Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr., resulting in a sprained left ankle. He has already confirmed that he will not be featured in the final game of the season.

The Suns are undoubtedly the most disappointing team in the league this season. As the league's highest-payroll team, they failed to make the playoffs. Boss Ishbia is expected to make a major adjustment. Durant, whose contract doesn't expire until the 2025-26 season, is the Suns' most valuable trade.

If this is really Durant's curtain call at Phoenix, then his left ankle injury is a frustrating echo. At the 2023 trade deadline, Durant was traded from the Nets to the Suns, where he played in three road games before returning to Arizona. Before his first home game, Durant sprained his left ankle during a pregame warm-up, an accident that sidelined him for three weeks. More than two years later, in the game against the Rockets, he suffered the same injury in almost the same position.

This is not the happy ending that one would expect.

It's not easy to assess what happens during two ankle sprains. Durant's performance has been at the top level, but the Suns' results have deteriorated. Two years ago, they lost to eventual champions in the Western Conference semifinals; Last year, he was swept out of the first round by the Timberwolves; And this year, he completely missed the playoffs. During Durant's time, the Suns only won the 2023 playoffs against the understaffed Clippers to win the series.

It's not all Durant's fault. In the summer of 2023, the Suns traded for Bradley Beal, a three-time All-Star who averaged 30 points per game twice. The team was supposed to build around the "Big Three" of Durant, Booker and Beal, but this lineup looks good on paper, but it is not as good as it should be on the court. Defensive and hard-nosed style have been neglected, and as a team with the most expensive roster with a salary higher than the second-highest tier, the Suns have been limited in terms of personnel adjustments. This season, they've completely collapsed.

Durant understands the truth. Excellence goes hand in hand with high expectations, and failure is criticised, especially with star players.

During his time with the Suns, Durant rarely shied away from reporters. After the trade deadline this season, he spoke frankly about his surprise when he learned that the Suns had considered trading him to the Warriors. Sometimes, he would ask reporters why a question was asked or why it was worded that way.

Last October, Durant was a guest on Kay Adams' podcast. In the interview, the two talked about the new statue unveiled by the Heat for the team's all-time star Wade, and the conversation then turned to Durant.

"I'm very, very skeptical that just because I'm playing basketball, I'm going to put up a statue of me somewhere," Durant said. However, I am grateful for the affection and respect that everyone has shown me, and that is enough for me. ”

Adams believes that Durant said this because of the public reaction to the Wade statue. Durant corrected her.

He said, "No, you see, Wade's situation is different. He's Miami, he's the Heat...... Few players can get that much affection in a city. It's usually players who have a Hall of Fame-caliber career, have won a championship, and have been in the same city for a long time. This is not the case with me. ”

Durant's induction into the Hall of Fame is almost a certainty, but he doesn't have a real NBA home. In Oklahoma City, he's still booed, even though he played there for eight seasons and led the Thunder to the Finals before moving to the Warriors. He helped the Warriors win two championships, but didn't stay long in the Bay Area. During his time in Brooklyn, most people only remember how he recovered from an Achilles tendon injury.

Phoenix, a championship-hungry basketball city, could have been different. Fans here have also warmly embraced superstars in the past. In 1992, the Suns traded for Barkley, who he considered the team's final piece of the championship puzzle. Barkley's first season on the job almost achieved that goal. He led the Suns to a league-best record of 62 wins in the regular season, won the regular season MVP, and led the team to the Finals, but unfortunately lost to the Jordan-led Bulls.

Barkley's rest of the year at Phoenix didn't go well. He suffered injuries and asked to leave after four seasons. Years later, people seem to have forgotten about it. Although the Suns did not erect a statue of him, they selected him for his merits in the team's Circle of Honor. He has made this team shine.

If Durant can follow a similar trajectory, the Suns could do the same for him. It's just that Durant seems to be left with more sighs and regrets.