The 2022-23 campaign is already proving to be one to forget for the Brooklyn Nets. They are off to a 4-7 start, fired head coach Steve Nash and have had to suspend star guard Kyrie Irving. Wins against the Hornets and the Wizards brightened up the mood around the team for a bit but they then proceeded to lose to the Dallas Mavericks last night.
Even though the losses continue to pile up, it is certainly not due to poor play from Kevin Durant. The Nets have seen their main man score at least 25 points in every game this season, despite opponents double and triple-teaming him during games.
Kevin Durant Spoke On Teams Focusing Their Attention On Him
The game against the Mavs was more of the same, as KD had to deal with them sending 2 or 3 guys at him for much of the game. He was getting a bit frustrated by all of it and exchanged words with Theo Pinson on the Dallas bench in the fourth quarter. After the game, KD explained what went down.
The trash talk between Kevin Durant and Theo Pinson was about the Mavs throwing the kitchen sink at him defensively. "I told him he was going to have to be Magic Johnson tonight and pass," Pinson told me.
— Tim MacMahon (@BannedMacMahon) November 8, 2022
KD: "Nobody in this league wants to let me go 1-on-1 or want to see me at my spots, so they’re going to throw three or four people at me, play zone up when I get the ball. I was just telling him, ‘This is how great I am.’"
— Tim MacMahon (@BannedMacMahon) November 8, 2022
The trash talk between Kevin Durant and Theo Pinson was about the Mavs throwing the kitchen sink at him defensively. “I told him he was going to have to be Magic Johnson tonight and pass,” Pinson told me.
KD: “Nobody in this league wants to let me go 1-on-1 or want to see me at my spots, so they’re going to throw three or four people at me, play zone up when I get the ball. I was just telling him, ‘This is how great I am.’”
KD (cont.): “It’s just a simple fact that when you put that much attention on one player when we’re playing a team sport, it just shows how great I am. He understood.”
Everyone in the league knows that if they let him go 1-on-1 or get to his spots, then he’s going to kill them. Hounding him all game by sending multiple defenders is the best way to reduce his impact on the games and we have seen that. KD has been putting up great numbers while also being very efficient, but it hasn’t been enough to win games.
He does have to take a chunk of the blame for this loss to the Mavericks, however, as he missed a crucial free throw late in the game when he had a chance to tie things up. He had converted 62 free throws in a row prior to that miss and it was a clear choke from one of the greatest free throw shooters in the history of the game. The Nets face the Knicks next with Kyrie still suspended and there are some rumors flying around that the team believes that he won’t fulfill the conditions to be eligible for a return, which in turn would potentially lead to a release. There’s just so much going on with the Nets right now and it’s not a surprise that they’re struggling on the court.
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