Kyrie Irving had another remarkable performance on Friday night for the Brooklyn Nets as he led his team to its second consecutive victory to the start the new season in a 113-109 victory against the New York Knicks.
Following the game, Irving described the type of atmosphere he experienced during his first taste of the heated rivalry between the Nets and the Knicks.
“That was more a subway rivalry back when they played in New Jersey,” Irving said, via ESPN's Malika Andrews. “Now that they're in Brooklyn, it's like a battle for who runs New York City.”
Irving continues to add fire to the flame that is this cross-town rivalry between these two New York-based franchises. The former Rookie of the Year winner definitely made his mark in his New York rivalry debut, as not only did he produce 26 points (on 8-of-19 shooting), two three-pointers, two rebounds, five assists, and three steals, but more importantly, he sank an amazing game-winner to close out the contest.
In the clip linked above, fellow Nets newcomer Kevin Durant is seen on the Brooklyn bench celebrating Irving's heartbreaking dagger trey. The former MVP is not expected to figure significantly for the Nets this season as he recover from his Achilles injury, but judging by how Kyrie has been balling out over the past two contests, it appears that he can handle things on his own just fine.
Irving's statement game on Friday follows a tremendous Nets debut, where he produced a 50-point performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Brooklyn lost that contest, 127-126 though, so despite Kyrie's mammoth of a game, it does seem that the Nets will be missing the services of the injured Durant more than originally anticipated.
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