Kevin Durant returns from injury, Kevin Durant picks up where he left off and shows no signs of rust.

It’s a story so old that you forget how remarkable it is that Durant doesn’t seem frail, out of breath or out of place every time he steps back on the floor after an absence.

Tuesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers was the latest example of his basketball majesty, continuing its stellar start to the season and helping the Phoenix Suns return to the winning list after a five-game losing streak.

Durant’s 23 points were easy and smooth, effective and didn’t disrupt the offensive flow. He could have scored 30 points without batting an eyelid, but the 27-point win didn’t require it.

When he plays, the Suns are 9-1 this year and look like every bit of the contender no one thought they would be this season. You can put Durant on any team in the league and it will be instantly better without having to adjust the system or game plan – his basketball acumen allows him to fit into any system without him having to be the system, without that he needs to dominate the ball or attention.

And if his health is good, the Suns could be the biggest party crasher in a crowded Western Conference this spring.

It’s still early and ensuring availability is not a guarantee for any team in this NBA, especially the Suns, who have two stars in their mid-30s in Durant and Bradley Beal. But against a formidable Lakers team that had their number last year, they looked dominant.

They outscored the Lakers by 25 points in the second half, and considering the Lakers struggled defensively against good competition (Orlando, Denver) last week, these are the games the Suns win should in order to establish hierarchy in the West.

Minnesota was a trendy pick to get to the finals after its surprise run to the West final last year, buoyed by the Timberwolves’ victory over Durant’s Suns in the first round, but they are under .500 – and out – after the loss to Houston Play in at the moment.

Even before Luka Dončić’s wrist injury cost him time, Dallas was struggling to find consistency. The Los Angeles Clippers are in one of the top six spots as there is no sign of Kawhi Leonard getting anywhere near a practice spot. And second and third place is occupied by Golden State and Houston – developments that no one would have predicted just a month ago.

Like last year, Oklahoma City is at the top of the conference, but has not yet proven this with a long playoff run. The Thunder still have youth on their side, while teams like the Suns need near-perfect conditions to get through the treacherous West.

But let’s assume Durant is as healthy as he was last season, when he played 75 games, debunking the injury-prone label he’s carried since injuring his Achilles tendon in the 2019 NBA Finals.

Let’s assume that at 36 years old, he has the same power and efficiency as the other two greybeards that the collective public gives deserved credit to: LeBron James and Stephen Curry.

Then there is no reason to simply dismiss Durant or his team in the postseason. Who knows if this 10-game sample size is simply a matter of fresh legs at the start of the season rather than the fatigue that will inevitably set in, but it seems like a smart bet to assume Durant has a strike rate of around 55 percent and Shooting 44 percent from 3-point range, 27 points, six rebounds and three assists.

That’s in line with Durant’s output of 28.2 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists on 53/41/89 splits, and those aren’t his career numbers – those are his post-Achilles numbers when he didn’t play again until afterward his 31st birthday.

We’ve gotten used to talking to Durant about other things — his perceived unhappiness, his propensity to leave franchises, his leadership, his health. The bottom line is that he plays just as reliably on the pitch no matter where he has been.

The conversations surrounding Durant have veered between completely unfair and reasonable, but rarely has the focus been on his game. Normally this is unassailable.

And these Suns aren’t a complete roster, relying heavily on the decision-making and dirty work of backup Jusuf Nurkić and Mason Plumlee to get by. That doesn’t always inspire great confidence when picking them to improve on their 49-win season last year.

But it appears to be the most complete roster Durant has played on since leaving the Bay Area. The Brooklyn Nets team that looked like a champ in 2021 until Kyrie Irving and James Harden were injured in the second round against the Milwaukee Bucks, leaving Durant alone with an undermanned roster? They would simply overwhelm you with talent and explosiveness, and we saw what happened when they lost their fastball.

This Suns team isn’t nearly as explosive, but with Durant acclimating, the pressure is taken off of Devin Booker, who had to take over the offense in Durant’s absence and lost his efficiency with the added attention.

They’re both at their best when the ball is swinging to them rather than with five pairs of eyes staring at the defense, and Mike Budenholzer as the head coach and Tyus Jones as the table-topping point guard take a lot of weight off their shoulders.

Durant is at his best when the game is easy because he makes the game look better than anyone in the league – still at his advanced age.

So far, Budenholzer has realized that Durant doesn’t need the most complicated moves, just enough movement to transition to dribbling and pulling up or catching and shooting. And Budenholzer got all three scorers to shoot more threes to keep up with the times in today’s game. Last year, the Suns ranked 25th in attempts despite ranking fifth in efficiency. This year, despite Durant’s absence, they are sixth in attempts and are sure to move up as their big three play together more often. Tuesday night was the Suns’ 99th regular-season game since the Beal trade that brought all three together, and it was the 49th time they were on the field at the same time.

Maybe it’s a fallacy to believe in the Suns, but since there isn’t a Celtics-like team in the conference, it’s safe to assume that with a healthy Durant they have as good a chance as anyone to make the playoffs.