NBA teams
Royce Young, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Kevin Durant (ankle) day to day

NBA, Oklahoma City Thunder

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant said he is going to take things "a day at a time" after suffering a mild right ankle sprain in Thursday night's 114-109 loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Seconds before halftime, Durant stepped on Marreese Speights' foot and badly rolled his ankle while going hard to the basket. Durant was called for a charge on the play. He stayed on the floor as teammates huddled around him before limping off with some assistance.

"I was a little nervous," said Durant, whose 30-point first half was the highest-scoring first half of his career. "But I knew when I got up and started walking it felt good. So I just wanted to make sure with the X-rays everything was good."

Durant had X-rays as a precaution, and results were negative. Coach Scott Brooks said he was uncertain whether Durant will play Friday against the Los Angeles Lakers, while Durant said he hopes to play.

"I don't know. I'm going to just take it a day at a time. Tomorrow morning we'll see how it reacts and go from there," he said. "I hope [to play]. That's the plan. But we'll see."

Durant's performance made him the first player since the ABA/NBA merger to score 30 points in less than 20 minutes, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Durant said he felt like he could have returned to the game in the second half but was advised to sit. The team is being extra cautious after he missed the first 17 games of the season following surgery to repair a stress fracture in his right foot.

"They had to convince me not to play," he said. "It was the foot I had surgery. I wanted to play, I wanted to go back out there, but they just wanted to be cautious.

"It shouldn't be [serious]. Just a sprained ankle. But when you sprain an ankle with the injury I had, it puts more pressure on that side of the foot."

Durant left the arena without a walking boot or crutches, only a light limp.

The reigning NBA MVP has played in only eight games since his return and still is playing under a 35-minute restriction.

In 18 first-half minutes Thursday night, Durant shot 10-for-13 from the field -- including 5-for-6 from 3-point range -- for his first 30-point game since returning from injury.

"I just made a few shots, man, to be honest," he said of his first-half explosion. "I've been feeling good the last week or so. I just made a few shots today; that was the difference."

Previously playing under a 30-minute restriction that was only recently raised, Durant has had some issues finding a rhythm because of awkward substitution patterns.

He has been able to settle into a better flow with lengthier spells on the floor the past couple of games.

"Kevin," Russell Westbrook said when asked what the key was to the Thunder's fast start. "Just sit back and watch. As you know he's one of the best players in the world, and when he gets going like that, there's not too much you can do."

Against the Warriors, Durant got hot in a hurry behind three consecutive 3-pointers in the first quarter, which helped the Thunder jump out to a 30-13 lead.

"I'm always positive, I'm always confident in myself," Durant said. "If I didn't play well that first half, I still would have felt confident. Like I've said, I've started to feel more comfortable each time I've stepped on the floor, each game. I've just got to keep plugging away and hopefully I can go tomorrow night."

ESPN.com's Marc Stein and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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