Durant ruled out

Kevin Durant was ruled out of Houston’s Game 1 against the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night after bruising his right knee in practice. (nba.com) Rockets coach Ime Udoka said Durant bumped knees with a teammate on Wednesday, and the team added him to the injury report Friday before listing him out for the playoff opener. (nba.com) (espn.com) Udoka said imaging showed “nothing major,” but Durant’s knee was “very tender” and hard to bend in certain directions. Houston started Reed Sheppard in Durant’s place. (nba.com) The timing changed the shape of a series that already opened with missing stars on both sides. The Lakers were also without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, both sidelined since injuries suffered on April 2 against Oklahoma City. (espn.com) (nba.com) Durant’s absence stripped Houston of the player who led the team with 26.0 points per game in his first season with the Rockets. He had played 78 regular-season games, his highest total since 2018-19. (espn.com) The matchup had been framed as another postseason meeting between Durant, 37, and LeBron James, 41. It is their fourth career playoff matchup, after three NBA Finals meetings earlier in their careers. (nba.com) Without Durant, Houston lost 107-98 at Crypto.com Arena, and Los Angeles took a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference first-round series. Luke Kennard scored 27 points, and James finished with 19 points and 13 assists. (nba.com) (espn.com) Udoka said he hoped it would be “a one game thing,” which left Houston’s next decision centered on Durant’s availability for Game 2 on Tuesday, April 21. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2)