When Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant ruptured his achilles in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, there was a litany of finger pointing on who was to blame for getting him on the court; but Andre Iguodala may be pointing a little more accurately. The former Finals MVP went on the Breakfast Club, to promote his memoir, “The 6th Man”. While on the show, Iggy was asked about the injury to Durant and the controversy surrounding it:
“We have a really great training staff. I’ll give credit where it’s due…I feel like they got him back. The tough thing is when you’re an athlete and you’re hurt, everybody’s looking at you sideways. And then being his teammate is harder, because everyone is feeding stuff in our head, “When KD coming back? When KD coming back?’”
It kind of gave credence to reports that surfaced after Game 4, that players were questioning Durant’s injury. While he doesn’t exactly say that KD’s teammates were questioning him, it does imply there was some uncertainty regarding his health as opposed to the times he was “scheduled to return”. But Iguodala and adds his own supporting detail:
“Last year, it happened to me. I missed 3 games of the Houston series. It goes to game 7 we barely get out of that series and now they’re looking at me like, ‘When you coming back?’ And I had a fractured leg, It’s being put out there that it’s a bone bruise, and I’m like, ‘Nah it’s fractured.’ So I’m fighting with the team, I’m fighting with people, I’m fighting with the media. Then my teammates ask me everyday, ‘How you feeling? How you feeling?’ So with K, he getting it from everywhere too: ‘How you feeling? How you feeling?’ Not just from team, but from family, people close to him.”
Iguodala’s statement is sort of like an interview Danny Green did last year when discussing the Kawhi Leonard injury situation with the San Antonio Spurs. Green – a former Spurs teammate with Leonard and his current Toronto Raptors teammate – talked about the Spurs medical staff missing a groin tear during that same season, in which Kawhi missed a ton of games due to a thigh bruise. The difference is that Leaonard and Green both had an ample amount of time to heal from their injuries. Durant initially got hurt in Game 5, ironically, of the Western Conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets. That injury was first disclosed to the public as a calf strain.
In the wake of everything that has happened during the Finals, regarding Durant’s injury, this is not a good look for the Warriors. Injuries are a part of the game, but unfortunately, they do not have a schedule when they can show up. I’m pretty sure Durant and the Golden State medical staff would not schedule a calf strain against a conference foe in the postseason; same thing can be said Iggy and his fractured leg last year. They still must be treated as such whenever they show up. It’s just some injuries you can not play through because it will do more harm to your career, which is why some take months to heal as opposed to weeks. It also does harm for the franchise. Players can see things like this go on in an organization and it could be the deciding factor if they want that place to be their free agent destination or finish their careers out with that team.
In addition to that bombshell, Iggy dropped a whole lot of jewels including how Allen Iverson mentored him and why he feels former Warriors head coach Mark Jackson was blackballed. Watch below:
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