Kevin Durant Being Cleared for Practice Gives Warriors Legitimate Shot at Pulling Off Huge Comeback

The Warriors are in an undeniably tough spot, down 3-1 in the NBA Finals to the Toronto Raptors, and heading on the road to face their mortality. Of course, Golden State is stuck here, partially, because they've been without star forward Kevin Durant for the entirety of the series, after KD went down with a calf injury during Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.

Golden State's depth has been exposed (and has eroded) in the absence of Durant, and the narrative that the Warriors are "better without him" is all but dead, after Steph Curry's unsuccessful attempt to "Go LeBron" in Game 3, sans-Klay Thompson as well. In fact, it seems that the fate of the Warriors may lie in the hands of Durant, hinging on whether or not he is able to return for Game 5. They did receive some good news on Sunday, as it appears that Durant will practice ahead of Monday's game.

Golden State certainly has an uphill battle ahead of them, as they will need to pull off three consecutive wins, including two in Toronto, to mount an historic comeback and win their third consecutive title. If Durant is in the fold, however, they have a legitimate chance to do exactly that.

It's obvious that the Warriors have been overmatched without Durant, but the league moves so fast that it's easy to forget just how overwhelming their status as favorites stood with Durant in the fold. They've been nearly impenetrable with him on the court for three seasons now. What's three wins in a row? One nervous mis-matched victory in Game 5, a home win to close out Oracle in Game 6, and a do-or-die Game 7 with the best in the business operating in a sweat-filled building. If KD can return, it's not hard to map it all out.

Without Klay Thompson in Game 3, we understood why the game got away from them so quickly. But with Thompson's return (and star performance) in the fourth contest, it became clear that Toronto would simply be able to return fire each time down the court, without another superstar in Durant on the court to impede them.

Rest assured: if KD is able to suit up, the Dubs will have a legitimate chance to pull off an improbable comeback. Without him, it would be far harder to forecast such a turnaround.