Oklahoma City Thunder: 5 Make Or Break Games Without Kevin Durant

May 21, 2014; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (left) and guard Russell Westbrook (right) watch from the bench against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
May 21, 2014; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (left) and guard Russell Westbrook (right) watch from the bench against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oklahoma City Thunder
May 21, 2014; San Antonio, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (left) and guard Russell Westbrook (right) watch from the bench against the San Antonio Spurs in game two of the Western Conference Finals of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports /

Which games that Kevin Durant will likely miss are most important to the Oklahoma City Thunder?

We’re still 11 days away from the start of the regular season, but the upcoming 2014-15 NBA campaign already seems a little less exciting. With Kevin Durant missing 6-8 weeks after undergoing successful surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his right foot, the league will be missing its second-best player at the start of the season. That doesn’t do much to help my prediction that this is the year the Oklahoma City Thunder finally break through and win a title, but the bigger question is: What will OKC do while the Durantula recovers?

We could talk about what to expect from Russell Westbrook as Option A (and B and C and D), or how Serge Ibaka needs to step up his offensive production. We could mention how the bench has to give Oklahoma City more than they have in years past, or how Scott Brooks might be on the hot seat soon thanks to this unfortunate injury. But for Thunder fans, the most important thing — excluding the obvious hope that KD will return fully healthy — is how much ground OKC will have to make up in the West by the time he comes back.

Let’s assume that Durant gets back to his Slim Reaper ways halfway through December, which would be right around the eight-week mark. Using the cutoff date of Dec. 15, the Thunder will have played 24 games without their best player, comprising nearly 30 percent of the regular season. The San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers can be expected to top the conference in that time, but here’s a look at five crucially important games for the Thunder that they’ll likely have to play without their MVP.

Honorable Mentions:

Oct. 29 at Portland Trail Blazers – Tough season opener, but let’s be more original than picking the season opener.
Nov. 16 vs. Houston Rockets – A James Harden rematch makes for a good storyline, but the Rockets got worse this summer and are beatable.
Dec. 18 at Golden State Warriors – A very important game either way, but Durant should be back by then (fingers crossed).