Warriors forward Kevin Durant set to miss Game 1 of the NBA Finals

The 2019 NBA Finals is officially set. Kevin Durant’s Golden State Warriors will face Kawhi Leonard’s Toronto Raptors. It will be an epic matchup between conference heavyweights which will get underway this week.

The Warriors are favored to come out on top in this series and win a third straight title. However, the defending champions will be without arguably their best player for Game 1. Head coach Steve Kerr let it be known that Durant, who is dealing with a calf strain which kept him out the entire Western Conference Finals, won’t be available on Thursday, via ESPN.

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“KD’s not playing Game 1,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said after Monday’s practice. “I think we already announced that, and we’ll see where it goes from here. This is where the fact that there’s a lot of days in between games during the Finals helps us, so we’ll see.”

Fortunately for the Warriors, it isn’t all bad news heading into the first game of the NBA Finals. DeMarcus Cousins, who is dealing with a quad injury he suffered in the first round, is considered questionable.

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DeMarcus Cousins, meanwhile, was listed as “questionable” for Game 1 as he continues to work his way back from a torn left quad.

The Raptors will head into this series with their best players at full strength. They are coming off an impressive Eastern Conference Finals in which they were able to take down Giannis Antetounkompo and the Milwaukee Bucks in six games. Leonard has taken his game to another level in these games. As a result, Toronto is as confident as ever with Game 1 only days away.