Kevin Durant will be turning 38 at the end of this month. Is it time to start reducing his minutes?
The Houston Rockets’ playoff run was cut short last season when they lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers. This was in large part due to Kevin Durant suffering injuries and not being able to play.
Durant averaged 36.4 minutes per game across 78 games last season. This heavy load put too much strain on his body, as he is now 37 years old and will be turning 38 at the end of this month.
Houston relied too much on Durant; the team fell apart once he was unavailable to play. However, thanks to newfound roster depth, the rest of the team is strong enough to be relied upon in his absence.
Durant was brought in to win a championship, not an MVP award. Now that the team has more depth, there is less need for Durant to play 36.4 minutes per game. In fact, I would even like to see Durant sit out at least a few back-to-back games. Last season, he suited up for 14 games on no rest. This takes a huge toll on his body, and Houston should be more cautious in this upcoming season.
The benefits of playing Durant less are not only to protect his body, but also to help with the team’s young core. Durant playing less would mean more valuable playing time for the development of Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr., and Reed Sheppard.
Although the players are young, they have proven that they can be relied upon and trusted. In fact, Houston's lineup of Sengun, Smith Jr., Eason, Thompson, and Sheppard posted a strong +8.7 net rating when sharing the floor without Durant last season.Not only should the team feel confident in their ability to win as a young unit, but dialing back Durant’s workload would also give the young stars more opportunity, building towards a strong long-term franchise.
Analytics also show that resting Durant would provide a boost defensively. According to StatMuse, Durant had the worst individual defensive rating among regular rotation players on the entire roster (a rating of 114.9). This is likely because of Durant’s heavy offensive workload.
The opposing teams focused on applying pressure on him when they were in possession, making him overworked on both ends of the floor. Ime Udoka utilizes a high-energy switching scheme, and when Durant was tired, the defense would struggle to be effective in it and Houston would be forced to use more traditional defensive strategies, hence not utilizing the team’s versatile strengths.
Houston will need Durant in the playoffs if they want to make a run for the championship. How tightly managed will his minutes be during the regular season?
