Have surgery! Come on, Durant

On July 15, according to Texas media Paper City, Houston Rockets new player Kevin Durant underwent a minimally invasive surgery on his left thumb during the offseason.

Although the operation has not been made public before, several sources revealed that after the assessment, the Rockets management believed that "no excessive worry is needed" and the team's pace of preparing for the new season was not affected.

According to Paper City, Durant's surgery mainly targets old thumb injuries to the left-hand non-shooter.

While playing for the Suns last season, his thumb was discomfort due to repeated use and he needed to wear a bracket to protect him during off-field activities. During this offseason, the medical team recommended that minimally invasive surgery be completely solved to avoid the worsening of injuries due to high-intensity confrontation in the new season.

"This is more like a preventive treatment." A source close to the Rockets' medical team revealed, "The operation was completed in New York and was led by an orthopedic expert. The process was very smooth. The team doctor checked the X-ray and confirmed that the thumb bone structure was not damaged for a long time, and the recovery cycle is expected to take only 4-6 weeks."

Unlike the panic caused by major injuries of past players, the Rockets' reaction to Durant's surgery this time was "calm". Sources pointed out that the management decision was based on two key reports:

The first is medical evaluation: the team doctor team confirmed through three-dimensional imaging technology that the wear of the thumb joint cartilage is lower than the average level of professional athletes, and only local hyperplasia tissue is required for surgery;

The second is historical data: Durant's career has zero games absent from thumb-related injuries, and he played 62 games with injuries last season, and still maintained a 52.7% shooting percentage.

Although in recovery period, Durant has entered "Rocket Mode" early.

head coach Ime Uduka revealed in an interview: "He comes to the stadium to watch videos every day and fights with young players to train. Yesterday he also pulled Shepard (Reed Shepard) for two hours of mid-range jump shots."

data shows that after Durant joined, the Rockets' locker room training attendance rate increased to 98%, setting a new offseason high in the team's history. For comparison, this figure was only 76% during the same period last season.

Although the operation news has caused some concerns among fans, the Rockets' official ticketing system shows that the renewal rate of the new season's season's season ticket has reached 89%, an increase of 17% from the same period last year.

Social media monitoring shows that under the topic of "#KD thumb surgery", 83% of the comments are positive or neutral, and fans generally recognize the management's decision-making logic of "long-term health is greater than short-term results."

"We are more concerned about whether he can play a full season healthy." Mark Robinson, a representative of the Fan Association, said, "Look at him after the Achilles tendon rupture in 2019, who dares to question Durant's recovery ability now?" There are many cases of jumping through minor surgeries in NBA history:

Durant's bone transplant surgery in 2015: Average scores per game increased by 1.2 points after the operation, and the real shooting rate reached a career high; Curry's finger ligament repair in 2019: led the team to win the championship the next year, and the shooting rate of key balls increased by 9%; James' knee arthroscopy in 2024: 39-year-old is still selected for the third team of the best team.

"For players of Durant's level, minor surgery is an opportunity to adjust their status." ESPN data analyst Kevin Pelton pointed out. "His shooting hand shape depends more on his wrist than his thumb. As long as the core muscles remain healthy, this surgery will hardly affect the scoring efficiency."