Golden State Warriors: 5 Keys To Surviving Kevin Durant Injury

5. KD Returning On Time

A bit of an obvious key here, but the Warriors aren’t going to be avenging last year’s 3-1 Finals collapse if Kevin Durant isn’t back in enough time to not only shake off the rust, but prepare for a potential first round matchup that has given this team problems over the last few seasons.

Though no one would call the Denver Nuggets a “good team” with a 27-33 record that has them clinging to the West’s eighth seed, they present a few matchup problems for a Warriors side that has struggled to stop Nikola Jokic.

Golden State Warriors

Over the last two years, Golden State is 5-2 against the Nuggets, so it probably seems like worrying about them in the first round is a bit of a reach. But it wouldn’t be the first time an eighth-seeded Denver team knocked off the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, and it’s worth mentioning that a lot of the games between these two teams lately have been close.

Last year, Nuggets lost to Golden State by three in a regular season game played without Stephen Curry. A few days later, they beat the Warriors by two in a game played without Draymond Green. Just a few weeks ago, they shellacked the Dubs by 22, making 24 threes in a game played without Klay Thompson.

It’s easy to dismiss those negative encounters as the Warriors playing undermanned, but if KD can’t return on time for the first round of the playoffs and the Nuggets hold on to that eighth seed, isn’t that the exact same scenario they’d be facing?

Kevin Durant returning on time is important not only so he has enough time to shake off the rust for another run to the NBA Finals, but it could be crucial to ensuring the Warriors handle their business in the first round.