Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant will miss his team's next two games due to a family matter. The absences include Monday's matchup against the Phoenix Suns and Wednesday's NBA Cup game versus the Golden State Warriors. Durant is expected to return for Sunday's contest against the Utah Jazz.
The Houston Rockets will be without Kevin Durant for their upcoming road games against the Phoenix Suns on Monday and the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday, as reported by ESPN's Shams Charania. The 15-time NBA All-Star is tending to a family matter, with specifics not disclosed. This marks the first game Durant has missed this season for the Rockets, who hold a 10-4 record and sit as the fifth seed in the Western Conference.
Durant, in his first season with Houston after a blockbuster trade from the Suns in July 2025, has been a key contributor, averaging 24.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game. In the Rockets' most recent outing, a 112-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Friday, Durant recorded 13 points and eight rebounds. Nikola Jokić led Denver with 34 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists in that NBA Cup victory, snapping Houston's five-game win streak.
The trade that brought Durant to Houston was the largest in NBA history. In exchange, the Suns received Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, three 2025 NBA Draft selections—No. 10 pick Khaman Maluach, No. 31 pick Rasheer Fleming, and No. 41 pick Koby Brea—plus a 2026 second-round pick. Durant signed a two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets shortly after. Reflecting on the move, Durant said, "It all happened pretty fast. I wasn't expecting to leave Phoenix that quickly, but that's just the nature of the game." He praised coach Ime Udoka for understanding his approach to the game.
Durant previously spent less than three seasons with the Suns after arriving from the Brooklyn Nets in February 2023. Earlier, he won two championships with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018, and faced them in the 2018 Western Conference Finals. Last season's playoff series between the teams also went seven games, with Golden State prevailing. Durant is set to rejoin the Rockets for the back-to-back against the Utah Jazz starting Sunday.
