The NBA needs Kevin Durant to return for the Finals

The reigning Finals MVP has missed five games, yet the Warriors look better than ever. The NBA needs Kevin Durant to return to Golden State for the Finals

The NBA has found itself in a very odd situation this postseason. Normally, if the reigning back-to-back Finals MVP goes down with an injury, the team he plays for drops out of contention.

However, when Kevin Durant went down with an injury a couple of weeks back, the Golden State Warriors seemed to use it as fuel to go on a dominant playoff run. Since Durant’s injury, the Warriors have rattled off five straight wins (six, if you include the game KD got injured) and have clinched their fifth straight NBA Finals appearance.

They have won these games by nearly an average of 10 points. Leading many people to ask an interesting question: Are the Warriors better without Kevin Durant?

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Personally, I believe that the answer to this question is obviously no. But the Warriors need Kevin Durant for one distinct reason: so they do not have to play against Kevin Durant. Taking a superstar away from another team is what they are doing with Durant, and this run they are on proves that they don’t need the reigning Finals MVP to win.

A question that can be debated is whether or not the Warriors will need Durant to return to take down the Milwaukee Bucks or the Toronto Raptors. No matter which side you take in this argument, it is clear that it is an argument. That’s where we get to the NBA’s viewpoint on Kevin Durant’s injury.

The NBA needs to be rooting hard for Durant to return to the Warriors. There is no other professional sports league where a team can lose a top-5 player in the league, and still arguably be the best team. If the Patriots lose Tom Brady, will they still win the Super Bowl? No. If the Angles lost Mike Trout, would they win the World Series? No, and they probably won’t even win the World Series with Mike Trout.

It doesn’t matter what league you look at, NHL, MLB, NFL, or MLS, all other sports leagues have competition. The NBA has been trying to prove ever since Durant got to the Warriors that the league still has competition. Yet, here we are in year three of the Durant-Warriors era, and the Warriors are now three for three in their attempts at the NBA Finals.

However, most fans seem to push past this. It can be fun to have a team to root against. It can be fun for the league to have a dynasty. Jordan’s Bulls were fascinating to watch. Shaq and Kobe were must-watch television. Even Wade and LeBron were just so fun to hate, that you tuned in every game to watch. Yet, all three of these teams were just one player away from being average.

Take Jordan off the Bulls, Shaq off the Lakers, and LeBron off the Heat and you have three teams that can possibly make the Playoffs but are not real contenders to win the Finals. Take Durant off of the Golden State Warriors, and what do you get? A team that is actually more fun to watch because of the way they play.

The NBA is defined by superstars. That is why the NBA needs Durant. If Durant does not return from his injury, and Golden State goes on to win the NBA Finals, the NBA will look like it does not need one of its major superstars. The NBA is already lacking in this area with the Lakers and LeBron missing the Playoffs.

Also, if the Warriors prove they can win without Durant, it will show the lack of competition the league has. Competition is what drives people to watch sports. The Golden State Warriors playing so well without such an elite talent shows that when they get this talent back, they will be unstoppable. The more games the Warriors win without KD, the worse the NBA looks.

They need Durant to return fast. If Durant does return for the NBA Finals and they are competitive, the NBA will be in great condition. Giannis Antetokounmpo or Kawhi Leonard going up against Kevin Durant could make for a great NBA Finals. The future of the NBA is in question right now with LeBron being out of the East. The 2019 NBA Finals could be a huge turning point for the future of the NBA.

For Durant’s sake as well, he needs to get back as soon as he can. Durant could take over as the best player in the World, but as of right now he doesn’t even look like the best player on his team. Steph Curry has looked like the unanimous MVP Steph Curry on this run and has shown that he is the foundation of the Golden State Warriors.

When looking at the past greats of the league, they were always far and away the greatest player on their team. The only argument that could be made is Shaq and Kobe, but Kobe wasn’t the greatest player in the league during that era. Shaq was considered to be the most dominant player in the league, and he was very obviously the best player on the team. Durant was on a monstrous run this postseason before he got injured.

If he could return, and continue his excellence and capture a third ring and third Finals MVP, he could quite possibly capture the title of the best player in the world.