Sources – Kevin Durant expected to miss 1-2 weeks with ankle sprain

Phoenix Suns All-NBA forward Kevin Durant is expected to miss one to two weeks after suffering a left ankle sprain, sources told ESPN.

Durant suffered the injury when he landed on a San Antonio Spurs player’s foot in the Suns’ win on Tuesday night.

The Suns will now play at least a week without Durant, who led Phoenix to an 8-1 start before being sidelined on Nov. 8. Durant returned on Nov. 26, and the Suns have gone 3-1 with him back in the lineup.

Durant is averaging 25.8 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists while shooting 53.6% from the field and 44.9% from 3-point range this season.

Phoenix is ​​11-2 this season with Durant — and 1-6 without him. Suns star guard Bradley Beal missed five of the seven games Durant played last month, but he is now healthy and will stick with Devin Booker in the next few games.

Sprinting down the court in transition with 4:30 left in the second quarter Tuesday, Durant drove to the basket and tried to cut between Spurs defenders Julian Champagnie and Devin Vassell. Durant stepped on Champagnie’s left foot as he rose to take a shot.

Durant immediately fell to the floor, landing flat on his back before grabbing his left ankle. He stayed on the court and made the ensuing free throws before leaving the game 22 seconds later. He returned briefly at the start of the third quarter before heading to the locker room.

“It’s part of our league,” Suns coach Mike Budenholzer said after the game. “We’re no different. There’s not a team in the league that doesn’t deal with some in-and-out of lineups, and hopefully we learn and start to learn a way of playing that’s good for everybody, no matter who who is healthy and who doesn’t have other options to get more minutes, so we’ll just see how Kevin does and you just have to keep playing.

The Suns (12-8) begin a four-game road trip Thursday in New Orleans against the Pelicans.

ESPN’s Michael C. Wright contributed to this report.