Kevin Durant glanced over at the locker next to him and it still didn’t feel right that James Harden wasn’t there.
The good news is he should be back in time for the playoffs.
Harden passed the NBA-mandated tests required for him to return from the concussion he suffered when the Lakers’ Metta World Peace elbowed him in the back of the head, but the Thunder held him out of Wednesday night’s regular-season finale against the Denver Nuggets.
“We decided as a group to hold him out one more game and give him 24 more hours,” coach Scott Brooks said. “He should be fine in our recovery practice tomorrow as a team and our practice Friday.”
The playoffs start this weekend, with Oklahoma City as the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference and hosting its postseason opener.
“I’m just worried about his health and want to see him back on the floor with us because he means so much to us,” said Durant, the league’s two-time scoring champion. “He means so much to the city.
“It’s just tough not to see him right next to me in the locker room.”
