Durant Out Game 4 vs Lakers With Ankle Bone Bruise
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Kevin Durant will sit out Game 4 against the Los Angeles Lakers, missing consecutive games because of a sprained left ankle initially sustained in the second half of Houston's Game 2 loss on Tuesday night.
- Durant was diagnosed with a bone bruise in his sprained left ankle after further testing, a condition that would typically sideline a player two to three weeks during the regular season.
- The Rockets star has undergone around-the-clock treatment in an effort to play but has not been cleared by doctors to return, with the bone bruise producing further swelling, stiffness, and limited mobility.
- Durant reported to Houston's facility Sunday morning for rehab with the team's medical staff and took part in film sessions and meetings, remaining involved in all non-basketball team activities over the weekend.
- In his debut season with Houston, Durant sat out just four regular-season games in 2025-26 — none injury-related — and the Game 4 absence will mark his third missed postseason contest.
Why it matters: The Rockets lose their top scorer for a critical playoff game against the Lakers, with the bone-bruise diagnosis suggesting a two-to-three-week absence in a normal setting. Durant's rapid offseason debut with Houston had been defined by durability, so a high-stakes postseason absence marks a sharp reversal and raises the urgency of his clearance timeline in a series that now tilts toward Los Angeles.
