Kevin Durant has been hampered by a nagging toe injury

Flash back to June of 2012. The Oklahoma City Thunder, led by Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and dynamic sixth-man James Harden, were just defeated by LeBron James and Co. in the NBA Finals. Even though they were beaten by Miami, morale was sky high in OKC. Thunder fans knew they had a very young, very talented team that was the likely candidate to replace San Antonio as kings of the West.

Skip forward a few months to October of 2012. The Oklahoma City Thunder, after not being able to come to terms on a contract extension, traded away James Harden to the Houston Rockets in exchange for guards Jeremy Lamb and Kevin Martin, two first-round draft picks and a second-round draft pick. Oklahoma City is known as a fairly small-market team, and upper management thought it would be too expensive to hold onto Durant, Westbrook, Harden and Serge Ibaka, so the young shooting guard was shipped out of town in a move that was meant to save the team a few bucks.

Now skip forward again to present day. The Thunder currently find themselves 25-24, good enough for 10th place in the Western Conference. James Harden, the current front-runner for the MVP, and the Houston Rockets stand at 34-18 and are in third place in the West. Oklahoma City trails Phoenix by 2.5 games for the eighth seed, and they trail Portland by eight games in the Northwest Division. The Thunder find themselves on the outside looking in of a very intense playoff race in the West, and with the way teams like Phoenix, New Orleans, and San Antonio are playing, they might not have enough to make the postseason, especially with Durant missing four of their last five games with a sprained toe. Durant is questionable for Friday’s contest against New Orleans. Russell Westbrook is playing the best basketball of his career, but this team struggles offensively when Durant sits. If only they had another dynamic scorer to pair with Westbrook…

Durant’s toe injury is just one of many ailments teams around the NBA are dealing with. Once again, here is your injury report for Feb. 6-12.

Out

Dwight Howard – C, Rockets – Will be reevaluated in four weeks (Knee)

Howard received a bone marrow injection in his right knee on Wednesday, and will be reevaluated in around four weeks, per John Schuhmann of NBA.com. Howard has missed Houston’s last five games, with the Rockets going 5-1 in those contests. Howard’s numbers are down this year, but he has been limited most of the season by his ailing right knee. Howard is averaging 16.3 points, 11 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, down from 18.3 points, 12.2 rebounds and 1.8 blocks last season. His knee is clearly effecting his mobility and his speed, also forcing his free-throw attempts to drop to 6.9 per game, down from nine a season ago. The Rockets have fared well so far, with Donatas Motiejunas and Joey Dorsey filling most of the minutes at center in his absence, but Houston needs a healthy Howard if they have any hopes of reaching the NBA Finals. With Howard out for at least the next four weeks, fantasy owners should try to grab either DMo or Terrance Jones if they are available in your leagues. Dorsey should only be an option in the deepest of leagues, as he is only averaging 2.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game this season.

Bradley Beal – SG, Wizards – Day-to-day (Toe)

Beal left Thursday’s game against Charlotte after only 11 minutes due to a sore right toe. He will be listed as day-to-day, and should be questionable for Saturday’s game against Brooklyn. Beal has played well of late, averaging 17 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in his last 10 games for Washington. Beal shot 43.2 percent from three-point range during January on 4.4 attempts per game. This toe injury shouldn’t be anything too serious, but it may limit Beal over the next week or so.

Rajon Rondo – PG, Mavericks – No timetable for return (Eye and Nose)

Rondo suffered a gruesome injury last Saturday when he was accidentally kicked in the face by teammate Richard Jefferson. He suffered an orbital bone fracture in his left eye, and broke his nose. There is no timetable for Rondo’s return at this point, but he could possibly make it back Saturday against Portland, though that is doubtful. Rondo honestly might benefit from a few days off considering how awful he has shot this season. Never regarded as even an average shooter, Rondo has been a nightmare this season. He is currently shooting 40 percent from the field, 32 percent from deep, and an atrocious 31 percent from the free-throw line. He is still the talented play-maker and passer that he’s always been, but something in his shot is just off right now, and hopefully a few games away will get it right. Dallas is currently in sixth place in the West with San Antonio, Phoenix, New Orleans and Oklahoma City all right on their tail. With Rondo this team has a legitimate shot at reaching the Western Conference Finals. Without this team will be watching the playoffs from home. Fantasy owners could look to Devin Harris or J.J. Barea to fill the void left by Rondo, although neither one is playing well enough to get picked up right now. Another option might be Al-Farouq Aminu who is averaging 7.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and two steals per game over his last five.

Jordan Hill – C, Lakers – Out until after All-Star break (Hip Flexor)

Hill has a strained hip flexor that will likely keep him out until after the All-Star break. Hill averaged 13.1 points and 8.4 rebounds in January, and even posted four double-doubles in the month. The Lakers are downright awful, but Hill had been fairly consistent and healthy all season, so it is a shame to see him miss time like this. Fantasy owners should expect Ed Davis and Carlos Boozer to see additional minutes off the bench. The “sexy” pick-up would be fan favorite Tarik Black, but I still don’t see his value increasing much, even with Hill out.

J.J. Redick – SG, Clippers – Day-to-Day (Back Spasms)

Redick missed Thursday’s game against Toronto due to back spasms, per Rowan Kavner. It is not known how long the spasms will keep Redick out of action, but Doc Rivers hopes it isn’t an extended period. Redick averaged 13.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.1 three-pointers made during January while shooting a very impressive 45 percent from long range. With Redick out, expect Jamal Crawford to see extra minutes, and Austin Rivers should see some additional time as well, although I would advise against picking up the coach’s kid.

Returning From Injury

Ricky Rubio – PG, Timberwolves – Returned Monday (Ankle)

Rubio returned to action Monday after missing much of the season with a very serious ankle injury. He scored 10 points, grabbed three rebounds and had four assists in a loss to the Mavericks. Rubio will need a week or so to get back into game shape, but after that he should be good to go. When healthy Rubio is one of the top point guards in the NBA, and with Kevin Martin back from injury, Nikola Pekovic playing great basketball and Andrew Wiggins doing Andrew Wiggins things the Timberwolves should have a very productive second half of the season. They will again find themselves in the lottery, but for the first time in a while things are looking up in Minnesota.

Shabazz Muhammad – SG, Timberwolves – Could Return Sunday (Oblique)

Speaking of Timberwolves returning from injury, Muhammad should be back early next week after missing almost a month with an oblique injury. Muhammad had finally begun figuring out the NBA game before he went down, averaging 18.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists for Minnesota during the month of December. With Rubio, Muhammad, Martin, Pekovic and Georgi Dieng, the Timberwolves have a solid rotation and should be back in the playoff picture within the next three seasons. With both Rubio and Muhammad returning expect Mo Williams’ minutes to slowly start decreasing, and also expect Thaddeus Young to see less action. I believe the Timberwolves are committed to the future, meaning guys like Anthony Bennett, Zach LaVine, Dieng and Wiggins will see more time than the veterans on the team.

Gerald Green – SF, Suns – Returning Thursday (Calf)

Green is expected to suit up Thursday against Portland, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports. Green left early in Phoenix’s game against Memphis on Monday with an injured calf, but the Suns say he  should be ready to go on Thursday. Green is averaging 13 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 three-pointers made this season for Phoenix. Expect him to average about 20 minutes per game while he is healthy.

Andrew Chambers is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Andrew, check out his archive and follow him @beardedsports8.