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Phoenix Suns superstar forward Kevin Durant suffered another injury setback on Wednesday night after he slipped during pregame warmups.
In other news, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green fired back at Memphis Grizzlies wing Dillon Brooks following his recent criticism of the Warriors.
On that note, here’s the latest news from around the NBA as of March 9, 2023.
Kevin Durant suffers another injury setback
On Wednesday night against OKC, Kevin Durant was scheduled to make his Phoenix Suns home debut. However, his debut was postponed because of a left ankle sprain he sustained after slipping during warm-ups.
According to Suns coach Monty Williams, Durant will undergo testing on Thursday:
“We’ll get more testing done tomorrow,” Williams said.
“Right now, it’s just an ankle sprain and we don’t have anything official to report,” Williams continued.
Williams added that he felt bad for Durant as he suffered the injury while preparing for the game:
“He’s out there, working his tail off, getting ready for the game and twists his ankle,” Williams said.
“You can’t get frustrated about that. It’s life, you know what I’m saying? I felt bad for him because he feels bad,” Williams continued.
Without Durant, the Suns (37-29, fourth in the West) still cruised to a 132-101 victory against the shorthanded Thunder (31-35, 11th in the West). The team was led by star shooting guard Devin Booker, who finished with 44 points, three rebounds, and four assists on 73.9% shooting.
Phoenix has now won four straight games, including all three that Durant has suited up for.
Durant is averaging 26.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game on 69.0% shooting through three games with Phoenix.
Draymond Green fires back at Dillon Brooks
On Wednesday’s episode of "The Draymond Green Show," Draymond Green fired back at Dillon Brooks following his recent criticism of the Warriors. This included Brook’s comments about not liking Green in particular. As expected, Green didn’t pull any punches in his response:
"(Brooks) said, ‘I don’t like Draymond at all.’ You don’t know me. That’s number one," Green said.
"He said, ‘I just don’t like Golden State.' I, quite frankly, wouldn’t like a team that beats me all the time either. That’s number two.
"‘I don’t want anything to do with them.’ Quite frankly, you were a little kid in high school watching us win championships. You should be happy that you even witnessed that ... You’re a fan. That’s crazy," Green continued.
Green didn’t stop there, though. He even went as far as to say that the Grizzlies will only be contenders once they move on from Brooks entirely:
"If you've ever wondered why the Memphis Grizzlies are not ready to compete for a championship, look no further than this idiot right here," Green said.
"They actually are depending on this guy to help them win a championship, and he says his game is cool. Quite frankly, that just shows how little you know about basketball. That’s where it gets really interesting.
"Your level of understanding of the game of basketball is at a fan level. And you’re running around talking about a dynasty? The dynasty starts after you, not with you. That’s just a fact.
“I know dynasty-like players. They aren’t clowns. That doesn’t work when building a dynasty. Take it from me — I actually know! Clowns don’t work building a dynasty.
“I’m trying to figure out why they like you in Memphis. Or do they like you in Memphis? I’m not sure your teammates like you.
“I can tell you why they like me (in Golden State). When you contribute the way I have contributed to winning four championships, they tend to like you,” Green continued.
Finally, Green warned Brooks to look in the mirror the next time he thinks about criticizing him:
"Next time you speak up on me, you should do some soul searching. Next time you speak up on me, I hope you’re in a better situation than you are now, where the guys you play with actually enjoy playing with you because they actually think you’re contributing to winning,” Green said.
On Thursday in Memphis, Green and the Warriors (34-32, fifth in the West) will take on Brooks and the Grizzlies (38-26, third in the West). Then, on March 18 in Memphis, they'll play again.
Golden State has a perfect season record against Memphis.
ESPN issues statement after Kendrick Perkins says MVP voting is influenced by race
Former 14-year NBA veteran-turned-ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins made headlines earlier this week when he said that NBA MVP voting was influenced by race. Perkins, in particular, said that a majority of voters are white, which gives a voting boost to the league’s top white stars like Nikola Jokic. This led to Perkins receiving heavy backlash, including from fellow former players like Charles Barkley and J.J. Redick. However, ESPN has now issued a statement correcting Perkins’ comments.
ESPN “First Take” co-host Molly Qerim set the record straight during the opening of Wednesday’s episode of the show:
"I want to correct something here from yesterday’s show. When Kendrick Perkins said 80% of NBA voters for the MVP award are white, the NBA publicly announces the voters each year, and after review, it is clear that the panel is much more diverse than what was portrayed by Kendrick Perkins and we wanted to make sure we corrected that today,” Qerim said.
Ja Morant to miss at least 4 more games
Ja Morant, the star point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies, has been sidelined from the team indefinitely as a result of his Saturday night shooting incident in a nightclub in Colorado. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports that Morant won't be available for at least another four games.
“Ja Morant will continue to remain away from the team for at least the next four games,” Wojnarowski reported.
This means that the earliest Morant could possibly return is March 17 against San Antonio Spurs. However, there is no guarantee that he will be permitted to return by then.
Morant has been under investigation by both the NBA and Colorado police following the incident. According to the Glendale Police Department in Colorado, Morant will not face any charges in Colorado. This comes as the department found no proof that a crime was committed:
“In this case, it should be noted that on the night in question, the GPD did not receive any calls for service at the nightclub regarding a weapon of any type,” the police department said.
“Subsequently, no disturbances were reported, and no citizens or patrons of the club came forward to make a complaint.
“The investigation also concluded that no one was threatened or menaced with the firearm and in fact, no firearm was ever located,” the department continued.
The NBA is still investigating the incident. It remains to be seen whether Morant will face any fines or suspensions from the league.
The Grizzlies (38-26, third in the West) are 4-7 without Morant this season.
Morant is averaging 27.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 8.2 apg, and 1.1 spg on 46.3% shooting through 53 games.
