Is Kevin Durant playing tonight? Latest injury update for Suns vs. Clippers

After overhauling their roster this offseason to build around their superstar duo of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, the Phoenix Suns have not gotten off to the start they were hoping for to begin the 2023-24 campaign.

To complement Booker/Durant, the Suns traded for former All-NBA guard Bradley Beal. However, the three have played just four games together through 33 games this season and are expected to be short-handed again tonight.

Is Kevin Durant playing tonight against the Clippers?

Per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports, the Suns have officially listed Durant as out for tonight’s game, when they host the Los Angeles Clippers. Gambadoro noted that the Suns are expected to take a cautious approach with their 35-year-old franchise player while he tends to a hamstring injury, highlighting that soft tissue injuries “can be tricky.”

In the four games Durant, Booker, and Beal have played together, the Suns have a 2-2 record. Sitting at 18-15, the Suns are currently the eighth seed in a competitive Western Conference.

Durant has played 28 of 33 games this season, averaging 29.9 points per game to go with 6.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting 52.5 percent from the floor and a career-high 47.7 percent from beyond the arc. Despite the age and injury concerns, Durant has shown no signs of slowing down this season.

In the Suns’ last game without Durant, head coach Frank Vogel elected to roll with Chimezie Metu as the team’s fifth starter. Metu filled in admirably, scoring 14 points while shooting 4-of-8 from the floor, adding five rebounds, one assist, and a steal in 26 minutes of action.