Kevin Durant made sure to re-introduce himself to the new orleans Pelicans, Oracle Arena and the rest of the league in his return on Saturday night. During the Warriors' first possession, he drove his way to the hoop and delivered a thunderous one-handed reverse dunk.
However, for the span of Kevin Durant's 31-minute appearance, it became evident that Durant is not back to MVP form as of yet. However, the all-star small forward indicated that it might be a little while before Durant returns to superstar form. Nevertheless, Durant got plenty of game time, which was a positive sign, and that opening slam dunk was a grand opening statement.
Saturday's game was underwhelming
Kevin Durant contributed to the Warriors' win with 16 points on a shabby 6 of 15 shooting. Durant also snagged ten rebounds and distributed six assists in an otherwise one-sided and forgettable 22 point victory for the Warriors with the final score of 123-101. This win however against a New Orleans Pelicans' side that was struggling with injuries and missing its two all-stars Demarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis.
Another reason this game was forgettable for NBA fans was due to the absence of Stephen Curry who was suffering from a left knee contusion and an arranged of bumps and bruised from being battered hard in his 42 point performance against the Phoenix Suns Wednesday night.
Curry is recovering fine and is expected to return for Monday night's game against the Utah Jazz at Oracle Arena.
In this match, it was Klay Thompon who lead with 20 points, as six other Warriors put up double-digit scoring performances. This win was the Warriors 14th straight victory, the longest winning streak in the Association this season.
This win improved the Warriors already league-best record to 66-14.
Durant's play was the main concern in this game
Despite all this, the absence of three all-stars and the fact that both teams had nothing to play for, the Warriors had already clinched the first seed in the West and the Pelicans, already eliminated from the playoffs before today's game.
The only selling point of this game was the return of Durant. Steve Kerr also stated before the match that he was more concerned about the quality of the team's play with the return of Durant than the result of Saturday's game.
Kevin Durant's jumper looked rusty. Durant did not do anything of notice on the defensive end. However, he was not exposed on the defensive end of the floor either. Durant appeared like he was trying to readjust to the pace of an NBA game for the first time since his injury. Despite this Durant became noticeably better as the match progressed and was pleased with his performance after the game.
The Warriors' bench was a key factor in the win
Notwithstanding the absence of Stephen Curry, it was another excellent all-around performance for Andre Iguodala who dropped 15 points on 70 percent shooting along with five rebounds and five assists.
Shaun Livingston who was starting in the absence of Stephen Curry also was a key contributor scoring 14 points on 70 percent shooting from the field. Ian Clark provided a spark off the bench contributing with 17 points. Meanwhile, backup center JaVale McGee shot 80 percent from the field, finishing with 16 points.
