Kevin Durant will miss his first game of the season tonight as the Brooklyn Nets face the Orlando Magic. After playing in all 16 games so far this season, a right shoulder sprain will sideline the MVP candidate.
Head coach Steve Nash said to reporters that Durant was playing through a tweak in his shoulder. Now, the Nets will rest him against a rebuilding Magic squad.
Steve Nash told us a couple days ago Kevin Durant had “a little tweak” in his shoulder and is playing through it. Durant followed saying “it’s solid” and was receiving treatment on it.
This will be Durant’s first game missed this season. https://t.co/xeBYu38UBK
— Chris Milholen (@CMilholenSB) November 19, 2021
The Nets still surely miss Durant's elite scoring but they aren't totally doomed. The Magic are a young, scrappy team but they have yet to grow into a good one. They rank 26th in Defensive Rating and their 4-11 record is the worst in the Eastern Conference. This game is still very winnable for the Nets, especially because it's a home game.
This season, Durant has continued to astound the basketball world as he remains one of the very best players in the league after tearing his Achilles tendon. The 33-year-old is enjoying the most efficient scoring season of his career so far, averaging 28.6 points per game (the most since his MVP campaign in 2014) on a career-high field-goal percentage of 56.7 percent. Even if he can't sustain these incredible marks all year, he's still going to garner MVP votes.
Brooklyn will be undermanned with Durant, Joe Harris, Paul Millsap and Nic Claxton all sidelined and Kyrie Irving still away from the team. James Harden will have to carry a bigger load offensively and rely more on Patty Mills, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge to get the job done tonight.
Follow Us
Subscribe