Warriors vs. Raptors: Durant Out For Game 1, Doubtful For Game 2

Kevin Durant has officially been ruled out of Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals with Steve Kerr’s assessment sounding like his availability for Game 2 will also be a stretch. The Golden State Warriors are still to decide if the small forward will travel to Toronto for the first two games.

The Warriors forward suffered a right calf strain during Game 5 against the Houston Rockets in the playoff second round series. It was initially expected to be a short absence but Kerr revealed Monday that Durant is still to begin proper on-court activities.

“KD's not playing Game 1," Kerr said, as quoted on USA Today. "I think we already announced that. And we'll see where it goes from here. This is where the fact that there's a lot of days in between games during the Finals helps us, so we'll see."

"Not with the team," the Warriors head coach added. "If he did anything on the court, it would've been pretty light. I know he's been out kinda shooting some shots, but I haven't talked to (director of sports medicine and performance) Rick (Celebrini) today, so I'm not exactly sure what he's done today."

Durant’s absence has thus far not been felt too much with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green taking their game to the next level, especially against the Portland Trail Blazers, whom they swept 4-0 in the Western Conference Finals. But Durant will be missed when they face the Raptors, who beat the Milwaukee Bucks – the best NBA regular season team – in six games.

Meanwhile, there is better news on the DeMarcus Cousins front with the big center now listed as questionable for Game 1 after beginning non-starters scrimmages. He has been out since Game 2 of the first round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers when he suffered a quad injury.

“DeMarcus is making good progress right now," Kerr said. "... He's scrimmaged twice; he's working on his conditioning. The good news is his body feels good, his quad feels good, but he's working his way back into shape and into rhythm so this is not a simple dynamic for him and I feel bad for him."

"This is one of the reasons why he came to this team, it was to play in the playoffs and hopefully go to the Finals. We are and with Game 1 just a few days away it's not an easy position to be in," he said.