HOUSTON, TEXAS – OCTOBER 08: Kevin Durant #7 of the Houston Rockets drives against the Utah Jazz during the first half of a preseason game at Toyota Center on October 08, 2025 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
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Has Kevin Durant already played his final game for the Houston Rockets?
It’s starting to look that way.
The 37-year-old forward played in Game 2 of the Rockets-Lakers series last Tuesday but hasn’t played since. With LeBron James and the Lakers up 3-1 in the series, Durant is expected to miss Game 5 on Wednesday with a bone bruise in his sprained left ankle that “has led to stiffness, swelling and a lack of mobility,” ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on SportsCenter.
“This is a 2-3 week injury in the regular season,” Charania said.
If the Lakers go on to finish off the Rockets, Durant’s time in Houston may be done.
Michael Pina of The Ringer wrote that Durant could become “a stepping stone this summer” for the Rockets.
He lists “the Heat, Timberwolves, Blazers, Mavericks, Pistons, Knicks, Raptors, Hawks, Magic, Lakers, Nuggets, Hornets, Bulls, Wizards, Warriors, Pacers, Jazz, Sixers, Celtics, Cavaliers, Bucks, and Clippers” as having “varying degrees of interest” in Durant.
Durant, who currently ranks fifth on the all-time NBA scoring list, is a two-time NBA champion and two-time Finals MVP with the Golden State Warriors, but he is on his fifth franchise and his current team is on the verge of being knocked out in the first round.
Durant signed a two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets last October that runs through the 2027-28 season and includes a player option.
He is under contract for three more years at $144.7 million total and is the NBA’s all-time leader in career earnings, at more than $598 million.