Kevin Durant was unable to join his squad for Saturday's Christmas Day spectacle as his Brooklyn Nets took down LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the newly renamed Crypto.com Arena. It didn't matter too much, though, as a shorthanded Nets side still emerged victorious in this marquee matchup, 122-115.

A lot was on the line for both teams in this contest. As expected, KD was tuned in from the comfort of his own home. The Nets were up big in the third period before the Lakers mounted a tremendous comeback to put themselves in a position to steal the game away from Brooklyn. Ultimately, the Nets were able to hold on as they edged out LeBron and Co. in what turned out to be a thrilling matchup. This prompted an epic reaction from Durant as soon as he realized that the W was in the bag:

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Durant was recently placed under the league's health and safety protocols, which was a huge blow for the Nets. Fortunately, they got James Harden back just in time, and the former league MVP quickly made up for lost time with a 36-point performance against LA.

This was Brooklyn's first game back after their last three contests were postponed due to COVID issues. They return to action on Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers.