The Brooklyn Nets will be without Kevin Durant for a considerable period after the former league MVP was diagnosed with a sprained MCL in his knee. The Nets were cruising behind KD's heroics before he went down, so the big question now is if the rest of the squad can step up to the plate without Durant in the picture. In his mind, NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins firmly believes that it's Kyrie Irving's time to shine.

Perk issued a bold challenge for Kyrie now that KD is going to be sitting out for at least a month. According to the ESPN broadcaster, now would be the time for Irving to prove all his doubters wrong about being able to stand as a lone superstar:

“Kyrie Irving, can you do what Kevin Durant did when you were out last year?” Perkins asked. “… This has been the question mark on Kyrie his entire career since he was drafted with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Can he lead a team and get wins as the top dog without another superstar alongside of him?

“We're not asking for a full size. We're just asking for a sample size. We're just asking for an appetizer. We're talking about a month to 45 days. Can you get wins and get your numbers and be a leader on the floor?”

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As Perkins said, Kyrie has enough talent around him to make this thing work. We are also all aware of the fact that this man is talented enough to lead a team. Kyrie Irving now has the perfect opportunity to do the same as he looks to maintain Brooklyn's standing as one of the top seeds in the East with KD sidelined.

There's no better way to kick things off for Kyrie than with a matchup against the defending Eastern Conference champions Boston Celtics on Thursday night. This will be the first game Durant will be out, and an Irving-led victory for the Nets would be quite a statement from the controversial point guard.