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Kevin Durant put on a show on Sunday for the Brooklyn Nets. The player many feel is the best in the world came into a matinee vs. Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and the New York Knicks and put on his own personal fireworks display. There was no Kyrie Irving in the game, although bizarrely he was in the stands watching as a fan. The seven-time All-Star actually purchased tickets as if he wasn't on the team and got treated to a vintage 53 points, 9 assists, 6 rebound performance by his close friend, Slim Reaper.
Most of the attention in this one will go towards Irving and NYC Mayor Eric Adams. There is a new rule where Irving, despite being unvaccinated, can now attend Nets games at Barclays Center as a fan. It sounds like he isn't allowed on their bench, but he did spend halftime with the team, according to head coach Steve Nash.
And Durant weighed in on that subject following the 110-107 win, the team's third in a row, with some bold words for NYC Mayor Eric Adams:
Kevin Durant calls out Mayor 'Eric' Adams by first name. Has bold message on the Kyrie Irving situation he finds 'ridiculous.' Thinks the Mayor is just looking for 'attention' and 'flexing a point.' pic.twitter.com/5xDXbECwQF
— DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) March 13, 2022
But the Nets still found time to appreciate their best player's performance amid all the vaccination mandate talk.
“Kevin was unbelievable,” Steve Nash said. “Obviously carried us, made all the big plays, rebounds, assists, the whole deal. So he was Kevin Durant on full display. But I think also you gotta tip your hat to all the other guys that did so many things out there.”
One of those other guys was Andre Drummond who both Nash and Durant praised. Drummond rolled his ankle early on contending with Joel Embiid in the last game. But he made a recovery and came up big against Mitchell Robinson and the Knicks. Drummond tallied 18 points, 10 rebounds, and a block, nailing all 8 of his shots.
“I don't really like to predetermine what I'ma do out there you know,” said Durant after the win. “I just try to go with the flow and do what's required of me out there.” Tom Thibodeau's Knicks had a reasonable enough strategy, sending sporadic blitzes and doubles to take the ball out of his hands at times.
But there isn't much you can do against stuff like this:
Kevin Durant makes dropping 53 look so effortless. This is pure art. pic.twitter.com/LoLvTcjmtG
— Hilltop Hoops (@HilltopNBA) March 13, 2022
“I didn't want us to get stagnant on the offensive side of the ball so I just put up a lot of shots tonight. Andre was there to rebound a lot of them for us,” Kevin Durant said.
Kevin Durant says he doesn't like to "predetermine" how he'll play. But he knew they were shorthanded so he: "didn't want us to get stagnant on the offensive side of the ball so I just put up a lot of shots tonight, Andre was there to rebound a lot of them for us."#NetsWorld pic.twitter.com/szgHGcRejf
— DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) March 13, 2022
The Nets are in 8th place in the East. They sit 2.5 games behind the 7th place Raptors, who as of today, they'd meet in the Play-In for a road game in Toronto Irving would not be eligible for. If they won that, they'd be the 7th seed for the playoffs. If they lost, they'd then host the winner of the 9th vs. 10th seed. Currently in 9th place is the Charlotte Hornets, who trail Brooklyn by 2 games.
“It's hard not to watch,” Bruce Brown said about Durant's performance. “They send three guys over at him he would still just shoot it right over him. Man, that man's insane. He makes everything look easy out there.”
Brown has been on a bit of a tear recently himself. The player often called a Swiss Army Knife had 15 points, 5 assists, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals. He does a bit of everything, and also allows us to imagine how the team may eventually deploy Ben Simmons when he's finally eligible to play.
Mixing in some screens, some short-roll game, some cutting, glass-crashing, and transition, Brown doesn't need plays called for him to be effective. Simmons may have those qualities too.
But without Irving, without Simmons, and without Seth Curry (a late scratch dealing with a lingering ankle/calf issue according to Nash) KD picked up the slack. But he had to log 43 minutes to do it. And that isn't ideal for a player appearing in just his 5th game back after missing 21 with an MCL sprain.
So if there is no change to the mandates, is KD prepared to continue to carry his team like he did Sunday? “Let me die out there, I told you,” Durant said. That's his mentality, and it contrasts in important ways from the teammate so many are hoping can eventually join him so he doesn't have to die out there.
