Rockets Media Member: Durant Handling Heavy Ball-Handling Duties at His Age Is Not the Best Choice, Frequent Turnovers Become a Concern

In a recently updated podcast episode, Houston Rockets media member Jackson Gatlin discussed how the team should use Kevin Durant. Gatlin pointed out that the Rockets often have to ask Durant to take on a large amount of ball-handling responsibility in key moments, which is not the ideal configuration for a team with a superstar like him. Although Durant, as a star player, will choose to attack with the ball in his hands, he committed multiple turnovers under high-pressure defense in the second game of the playoffs. This shows that his ball security is not always stable, which is one of the few clear weaknesses in his game as a top-level player.

Gatlin further analyzed that Durant sometimes commits a large number of poor turnovers over several consecutive games, then improves, but the issue reappears after some time. Last season, with Fred VanVleet sidelined, there was no other experienced primary ball-handler to help relieve pressure on young players Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard, making this situation more noticeable.

In the past NBA regular season, Durant appeared in 78 games, starting all of them, averaging 36.4 minutes per game and recording 26.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.8 assists, along with 0.8 steals and 0.9 blocks. His turnover rate was also a notable concern, as he averaged 3.2 turnovers per game along with 1.8 fouls. He posted a 52.0% overall field-goal percentage, a 41.3% three-point shooting percentage, and an 87.4% free-throw percentage. However, in the second playoff game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Durant's performance was somewhat below his usual level. In 40 minutes and 59 seconds of playing time, he shot 7-for-12 from the field, 1-for-4 from three-point range, and 8-for-9 from the free-throw line, finishing with 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, while also committing 9 turnovers and 4 fouls with a plus-minus of -2. These statistics indicate that although he remains a threat, ball-handling turnovers have become an issue that needs to be addressed.