KD’s impact felt on short-handed Brooklyn squad
Through 28 games, so much has gone wrong for the Nets. Kyrie Irving hasn’t played a game. Blake Griffin and James Harden have dealt with significant struggles. Joe Harris is hurt and Nic Claxton missed significant time.
And, yet, the Nets own the best record in the Eastern Conference, two games in the loss column clear of the Bulls.
Kevin Durant has had that kind of impact. He neutralizes weaknesses and makes up for key player absences.
The best example was Tuesday night. Without seven players, as COVID-19 hit the Nets hard, he played on a sore ankle and led the way in an overtime win over the Raptors. At one point, it was Durant and four rookies, a lineup the Nets had never even practiced with. It didn’t matter. He still had a tripledouble of 34 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in 48 gritty minutes.
“I wasn’t expecting James [Harden] and Bruce [Brown] to be out until I got to the game, which was a surprise, but that made me even more excited to play this game with the young dudes,” Durant said. “I hate that my teammates are out. I wish everybody was playing. But I knew it was a great opportunity for all of us to hoop, for one, and just to see where we are against a solid team.”
This wasn’t in the preseason script. The Nets were hoping to be able to lighten the load on Durant during the regular season, not increase it. But Irving declined to follow New
York City COVID-19 vaccine mandates, and hasn’t been with the team. Griffin hasn’t come close to the player who was so impactful last year, losing his spot in the rotation until recently. Harden hasn’t been himself, Harris is out for the foreseeable future after undergoing ankle surgery last month and Claxton missed five weeks with a non-COVID illness.
It hasn’t stopped Durant from leading the league in scoring at 29.6 points per game while also averaging 7.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists and shooting a robust 52.3 percent from the field. He’s putting up these numbers at age 33 while playing 36.9 minutes per game, his most since the 2013-14 season, and guiding the Nets to 20 wins in 28 games.
“I just try to do what’s required, man,” Durant said. “I mean, I want to be out there. I want to play. I want to win, so it starts there. So whatever I got to do to accomplish those three things, I’m going to do.”