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Steve Nash had the best seat in Amway Center for the Kyrie Irving show that ensued on Tuesday. Irving exploded for 60 points in the contest, leaving the Brooklyn Nets head coach in awe of what he just witnessed.
Irving was masterful as he led the Nets to a 150-108 demolition of the Magic in their own turf. The veteran guard already had 41 points in the first half to give Brooklyn a huge 86-56 advantage that they never relinquished. He could have scored more had Nash kept him in the game, but he only played a little over three minutes in the fourth quarter with the team trailing by a wide margin.
Speaking to reporters after the contest, Nash didn’t hold back in his praise of Irving. In fact, he had the perfect description of the performance that his guard put on, saying that it felt like his whole career highlight reel. That’s just how great it was.
“Felt like he had my career highlight reel the first 12 minutes of the game,” Nash shared, per Dave Early of ClutchPoints.
Kyrie Irving was a model of efficiency throughout, making 20 of his 31 shots on his way to his 60 points. He was able to score in a variety of ways, from attacking the rim, making his mid-range jumpers to punishing the Magic with his 3-point shooting. He went 8-of-12 from deep.
With that said, it’s not hard to see what Steve Nash was saying. Even more amazing, Irving did everything in such an electrifying way.
Furthermore, when asked about how he interacted with Irving as he was building his way to his incredible feat, Nash got brutally honest and admitted he simply didn’t get in the way of his star, and for good reason.
"You don't want to say much to him. You let him do his thing. It's not a time to fill his head with things. Let him play, let him stay in the zone."
-Steve Nash talks about how you interact with a guy who's cooking like Kyrie Irving was, 60 on 31 shots. pic.twitter.com/4Yt8MrjAou
— DaveEarly (@DavidEarly) March 16, 2022
While it’s such a waste that Irving is still not allowed to play at home games, Nets fans are certainly enjoying watching him whenever he plays. Nash for sure had a great time watching it from the sidelines, and it couldn’t come at a way better time for the team as they try to climb up the Eastern Conference standings and get out of the play-in spots if possible.