PHOENIX — Fans will have to wait a little longer to see Kevin Durant suit up in a Phoenix Suns jersey.
Suns head coach Monty Williams announced that the newest Suns forward will not play Friday in Phoenix's game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team that drafted Durant.
Williams said the decision to keep Durant on the sidelines for now was a team decision.
"It's not me, I think it's a combination of obviously what I see, but what I see is based on the medical team giving him clearance," Williams said Thursday. "But him feeling the level of conditioning, the level of sharpness that he needs to be at before he steps on the floor, so I think it's a combination of things but most importantly, it's just making sure he's comfortable.
"All of our guys want to get on the floor and he's as competitive as anybody I've ever been around," Williams said. "So I'm sure once he gets to a certain level, as far as sharpness and cardio, he'll be back out there."
It was previously reported that Durant could play Sunday, but it now looks like he will probably return to the court next week, with a possible debut coming on Wednesday when the Suns take on the Charlotte Hornets.
For now, Durant will continue to rehab his knee injury and prepare for his first action with his new Suns teammates. Until he steps on the court, fans will have to continue to dream of the offensive production from a starting unit with Chris Paul, Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton with the 13-time All-star.
Durant was acquired Feb. 9 for a package that included Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and several 1st-round picks.
The trade immediately moved the Suns back into championship contention and had fans dreaming of a parade in downtown Phoenix, but the Suns aren't ready to go that far.
"The talent has risen since he came, for sure," Williams said. "But I do feel like when guys watch him work, I think it's something that, it inspires people to get after it in their own workouts because you're not going to find anybody that goes as hard as Kevin. When he's doing his individual stuff it's amazing to watch. And I think from that standpoint, it's capable of elevating even a competitive gym."
"Kevin is a real legit dude," Suns center Deandre Ayton said. "He's a hooper, he's here. I'm meeting him here. I'm going to have to pull up like 2 hours earlier. I thought I was coming in here early, doing my thing, but no. He's in here, looks like he's ready to finish his workout and is just ready for practice. I'm going to have to do better on that end and show up a little earlier."
"We only had one All-Star this year," Suns guard Devin Booker said. "It was KD."
"I just don't do all the titles and stuff," Booker added. "That's for you guys and everybody else. I know we have a really talented group. I think enough to get to where we're trying to go and finish what we're trying to do. That's my main focus. Everything that's said about us will come regarding how we finish."
Booker also talked about last week's All-Star break and said it made him even more excited to play with Durant when the time comes.
"Break was a good time to sit back and reflect," Booker said. "Just talking with family and friends. We haven't been out on the floor with (Durant) yet, but just talking about the old days. 2015, '16, coming into Arizona not even knowing it was a real place. I'd never been to the west side of the (United) States, so to take it from the bottom of the barrel to a competitive team that has championship aspirations, it was a long journey but it's been fun."
But are the Suns anxious to get their new superstar in a uniform and on the court in a game? Monty Willaims says that's not exactly what they are feeling.
"I'd be lying if I just gave you the standard answer," Williams said. "I wouldn't say I'm anxious about it, I just want to see the guys build a rapport and rhythm. You want to see how good you can be with a full complement of players, but especially getting Kevin (Durant) on the floor is something that I don't take for granted. So, yeah, there's a part of me that's like, I wonder what that's going to look like, but I can't do anything about it until we have him on the floor. So I wouldn't say anxious, I'm just patiently waiting."
Booker added that there is excitement about playing with Durant because no one knows yet how good they can truly be.
"I think the beauty of it (is) we don't know what's coming until we get out there," Booker said. "We all trust our game, we all trust each other, we all have high respect for each other and that's not just me, Chris (Paul), and Kevin (Durant) either. That's all the way down the team. With (Darius Bazley) here too and TJ (Warren), just getting everybody implemented to what we've been doing the past couple, few years, things that you can only learn by being out there with each other."
And Ayton told reporters one of the best parts of all of this is that the Suns are finally close to being fully healthy.
"I wish Cam Payne was here to give you a visual on how we really feel but just seeing (Landry Shamet), (Cam Payne), KD, just everybody getting back, (Devin Booker) getting in shape, getting back to his tip-top shape and us just coming together and getting back in the lab, it's scary man because I think everybody's competitive level has risen a little bit," Ayton said. "The atmosphere around the facility has, I won't say gotten intense, but it definitely a little denser when it comes to handling business and (there) ain't no more playing games. (There are) less smiles, more seriousness, and getting the job done.
The Suns have 22 games left in their regular season, which ends on April 9.
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