Why Kevin Durant Thought His Career was Over in 2019

Despite being 37 years old, teams were lining up to potentially add 15-time All-Star Kevin Durant to their roster ahead of the new NBA season. Of course, the Houston Rockets won those sweepstakes, landing KD in a blockbuster trade, propelling them to title contention. Amid the madness, it’s almost been forgotten that just six years ago, Durant’s career was in serious jeopardy.

When Kevin Durant decides to call it a day, he will have done so as one of the best scorers of all time. Every sought-after accolade, Durant has it in his trophy cabinet. However, it’s impossible to speak of Durant’s career without mentioning the dreadful incident from 2019.

The majority of people remember Durant’s tenure with the Golden State Warriors as the very definition of dominant, but few remember the calf strain in the middle of the team’s second round series against the Houston Rockets. It wouldn’t be until Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors when KD would return the court.

That may have been one of the worst decisions of his career. Although he quickly reminded the world how good he was in his first 12 minutes, Durant would go on to tear his Achilles tendon. It was in that moment he knew, his entire career had come crashing down.

“My whole basketball career just flashed before my eyes,” Durant said on Netflix’s Starting 5. “Everything I did, everything that I thought about. All my favorite moments, all my bad moments, it flashed.”

That moment is one of the most infamous in NBA history. Plenty of players have broken down in pain once the realization hit of their situation. Indiana Pacers superstar Tyrese Haliburton visibly wept after tearing his Achilles tendon in the 2025 NBA Finals. Instead, Durant just stared at the crowd with one thought in mind.

“If you watch, I’m sitting there gazing into the crowd before somebody came over to help me up. Because I’m just like, ‘This s*** is over with,'” Durant revealed.

Fortunately, that wasn’t the case, and Durant was able to have one of the greatest comebacks in sports history. Some would argue that he is even better than he was before the injury.

Regardless, that doesn’t change how dire a situation his injury was. At the time, former Warriors general manager Bob Myers felt so bad that he was prepared to take the blame for it.

Bob Myers on Durant’s injury

The Warriors may have escaped Game 5 with a victory, but Myers wasn’t celebrating a win. No victory on the court could make up for the loss Durant had just experienced. Several years later, Myers’ sentiment remains the same.

“To see a player get hurt at that level and then for him to not be able to play in the Finals, for a guy that loves basketball as much as he did, it hurt. Obviously, I showed the pain,” Myers said.

During his post-game availability following Durant’s injury, he had to fight back tears while speaking about the two-time NBA champion.

“I don’t believe there’s anybody to blame, but I understand this world. If you have to, you can blame me,” Myers proclaimed.

It was speculated the team pushed Durant to return, even though he wasn’t 100%. But the freak accident wasn’t something anyone could have predicted.

Durant, of course, doesn’t believe Myers should hold onto that burden of blame. He has long since moved on and thrived further in the NBA. Looking as refreshed as he ever has, Durant now strives to lead the Rockets to the realm of champions similarly to what he did with the Warriors.