Kyrie Irving has joined the growing list of players having historic performances in the month of March 2022. While Irving already had a 50-point game earlier in the month, he bettered that by dropping 60 points on the Orlando Magic. He has tied the NBA season-high set by Karl-Anthony Towns yesterday after he scored 60 against the San Antonio Spurs.
Irving is still a part-time player due to his vaccination status and relished this opportunity away from home. His teammate Kevin Durant scored 53 in the Nets win against the New York Knicks a couple of days ago, making Irving and Durant the first pair of teammates to score 50 points in consecutive games.
Irving appreciated the moment and his teammates supporting him for this performance, as Irving played deep into the game even after the Nets had comfortably beaten the Magic. As a result, Irving thanked them after the game.
Kevin Durant 🤝 Kyrie Irving
Having 50+ point games in the same week. pic.twitter.com/UnU5qDcG4r
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) March 16, 2022
The Nets have finally started turning their season around after going on a 3-17 run through the start of the year that dropped them from atop the standings to the eighth seed. Now they are battling from behind to surpass the Toronto Raptors in 7 and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 6 for the last guaranteed playoff spot.
With the status of Ben Simmons still being up in the air and Kyrie playing just home games, there will be a lot of pressure on Kevin Durant. Their next game is against the red-hot Dallas Mavericks, who are fighting to stay the fourth seed in the West and go into the playoffs with home-court advantage.
Irving will not play against the Mavericks, which is a shame considering they would need his offensive wizardry against a team that is consistently shutting teams down and keeping them under 100 points. The Nets have a week-long home stretch right now and Irving will return to action next week against the Memphis Grizzlies.
