West Notes: Suns, Kevin Durant, Warriors, Draymond Green, Kings

Suns

Forward Kevin Durant will return to face the Warriors for the first time in a non-COVID season — meaning there will be fans in the stands and Durant will be in uniform for the Suns.

“I’m excited to play in front of those fans,” Durant told Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. “I had some incredible moments there and we built a bond that doesn’t really have to be spoken about, me and the fans in the Bay Area. Feel like they’ve been supporting me way before I came there, actually. Then once I became a part of the Warriors, they just went even harder in support of myself and my teammates.”

• Durant will enter the season with not just Devin Booker alongside him, but newcomer Bradley Beal. He indicated he’s also excited about Grayson Allen, acquired from the Bucks. “When he gets the opportunity to play with myself, (Booker) and (Beal), I think the floor opens up even more for him, and we could play off him a little bit more as well,” Durant said. “He’s just a guy that can fit in. You see how many teams he’s played on and how well he’s played at each stop, so we’re expecting him to have a solid year this year.”

Warriors

Forward Draymond Green will sit out the season opener as he continues to recover from a left ankle sprain, suffered before training camp.

Green has been cleared to scrimmage, though that happened just this week. He practiced on Monday.

“He’s doing really well but we don’t feel like it would be wise to throw him out with so little scrimmage time on the floor,” coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “We’ll reassess as the days go.”

• In case you missed it, shooting guard Klay Thompson is set to become an unrestricted free agent after a standstill in talks of a contract extension. We have more here.

Kings

Coach Mike Brown told reporters he’s challenged shooting guard Kevin Huerter to be tougher on defense, as the Kings aim to defend their title in the top-heavy and talented Pacific Division.

Huerter indicated he’s gotten the message, loud and clear.

“I just think it’s early,” Huerter said, via Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee. “For me, I’m not worried about the offensive side of the court right now. I think, like you guys have heard throughout this preseason, for us as a team and individually, it’s (about) being better on the other side of the court. We know what we’re capable of — really with anybody on the court — offensively. We’ve just got to continue to buy in and play the right way and do the things we’re supposed to on the other side.”

• Sacramento has the necessary depth to endure an 82-game season, and presumably, the playoffs that follow, writes Greg Wissinger of The Kings Herald.