Sans Kyrie Irving, the Brooklyn Nets were without a key cog in their system, and many had the Milwaukee Bucks chalked in the win column before opening tip-off even began.
Early in the game, the Bucks had control, holding a double-digit lead over their short-handed opponents.
But then Kevin Durant happened, and his performance gave the Bucks a sucker punch that they may not be able to recover from.
He went bananas in the second half, finishing with 49 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 assists in the critical Game 5 win.
Kevin Durant's 49-point, 17-rebound, 10-assist, 48-minute masterpiece puts the @BrooklynNets up 3-2! Game 6 is Thursday at 8:30 PM ET on ESPN. #NBAPlayoffs #ThatsGame
Jeff Green: 27 PTS, 7-8 3PM
Blake Griffin: 17 PTS
Giannis: 34 PTS, 12 REB pic.twitter.com/wKcRAbTrjo
— NBA (@NBA) June 16, 2021
Naturally, the masterpiece of a game has only bolstered the case that Durant is now the best player in basketball. On Twitter, his greatness resulted in quite a few reactions:
— Master (@MasterTes) June 16, 2021
Appreciate KD’s greatness 💯 pic.twitter.com/7jTGWVE22v
— NBA SKITS (@NBA_Skits) June 16, 2021
Legendary, iconic performance by Kevin Durant this evening.
Move over LeBron James, KD is the best player in the world! pic.twitter.com/hVGdyDJKyK
— 👑 Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) June 16, 2021
When KD seen Giannis and the Bucks tryna take the series https://t.co/7NIybPlqbr
— Josiah Johnson (@KingJosiah54) June 16, 2021
The most impressive thing about KD's historic performance is how easy it looked.
— Chris Palmer (@ChrisPalmerNBA) June 16, 2021
Wow
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) June 16, 2021
“Leeeeeet’s….let’s stay together” pic.twitter.com/xv58IthLBm
— J.A. Adande (@jadande) June 16, 2021
That might be the greatest individual performance I've ever witnessed in person. I watched Tatum go for 50 but the implications were different. What a performance from KD
— Kristian Winfield (@Krisplashed) June 16, 2021
Durant made history tonight, becoming the first player in league history to record 45 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists in a playoff game.
The fact that the score was so close, and the Nets needed every basket, only makes it more impressive. KD literally willed his team to victory, and it resulted in one of the best playoff performances ever.
Really, there’s not much else to say. If Durant keeps playing at his current pace, there’s nothing anybody can do to stop it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5zcIiO-JQU
