Kevin Durant Makes History

Stephen Curry goes out, Kevin Durant comes in. Injuries don’t derail the Golden State Warriors, who have a lot of ways to score.

On a night when neither Curry nor Klay Thompson suited up, Durant returned to the Warriors lineup after missing three games with a calf strain.

Just before halftime of Wednesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Durant, 29, scored his 20,000th career point in the NBA. It was his 25th of the game and it put him in the record books.

Only LeBron James had reached the 20,000-point plateau before turning 30. That’s good company to keep. And the company gets even better.

Only five players scored 20,000 points before they were 30 – the other three are Kobe Bryant, Wilt Chamberlain and Michael Jordan.

Now in his 11th season, Durant has averaged more than 25 points a game in the last 10. He was also the MVP of last year’s NBA Finals.

The Warriors always find someone to pick up the slack. Their roster may be stacked, but injuries seem to constantly bite. They started their 14th different lineup of the season against the Clippers, who themselves are no strangers to injury. And yet the Warriors still have the NBA’s best record, even after a 125-106 loss in
which the Clips’ Lou Williams stole the show with 50 points, eclipsing Durant’s 40, which tied his best in a Warriors uniform.

 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman