Durant questionable Friday with toe sprain

A lingering toe sprain may keep Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant sidelined for Friday's rematch against the New Orleans Pelicans.  

Durant is being listed as questionable, according to Royce Young of ESPN, in a game that will feature two teams battling for the final playoff spot in the loaded Western Conference for the second time in three days. The reigning MVP missed the Thunder's practice Thursday after sitting out Wednesday. 

Oklahoma City didn't need Durant on Wednesday, however, as Russell Westbrook's season-high 45-point performance powered the Thunder to a road win over the Pelicans. The two teams got Thursday off before meeting for the fourth and final time of the season Friday. 

New Orleans, sitting in ninth place in the West, is one game ahead of the Thunder and 1.5 behind the Phoenix Suns for the No. 8 seed in the West. 

The toe sprain has forced Durant to miss four of the team's last five contests, and he struggled in the one game he did play, scoring 15 points on 5-of-16 shooting from the field. Oklahoma City has gone 11-16 without him in the lineup and 14-8 with the six-time All-Star. 

Injuries have cost Durant a chunk of the season, but he's still performed at an elite level when he's taken the court. Durant's averaging 25.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting a career-best 51.1 percent from the field.