Kevin Durant has mightily struggled against the Boston Celtics in the first two games of the Brooklyn Nets’ first-round series against the C’s. He has committed many turnovers, hasn’t made shots he normally makes and has played badly overall, which has raised many eyebrows around the league.
KD can still become the man that leads the Celtics to the second round of the postseason, but the Celtics have been very comfortable stopping him, which is why they are 2-0 heading back to Barclays Center.
A lot of people have criticized Durant for his recent performances, including Skip Bayless, who has called him the best player in the world many times. Besides Bayless, another KD fan has spoken out on this matter, blasting the 2x NBA champion for his performances.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith didn’t hold anything back and went off on Durant for his performances during the first two matches of this series. During Thursday’s edition of First Take, Smith had this say:
The Brooklyn Nets are down 0-2 against the Celtics and @stephenasmith is appalled at the performance of KD.
“This is a tragic performance. … I have never seen Kevin Durant look this bad.” pic.twitter.com/UKuCVHwxxV
— First Take (@FirstTake) April 21, 2022
“You can’t look at him as the best player in the world which is what I’ve been saying for quite a while. This is a tragic performance by him in these first two games. I have never seen Kevin Durant look this bad.”
“He looked shook, he looked rattled and I never thought I would see something like that happen to Kevin Durant on the offensive side of the ball. It was an abysmal, embarrassing performance by Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets are on the verge of getting swept.”
The Nets have to get it together before it’s too late. They’re coming back to Brooklyn hoping that being back home helps them win the 3rd game of this series. They are likely to have Ben Simmons on the court next Monday, so that’s a good thing for them, too. However, it’s much better to see Simmons back with a 2-1 result instead of a 3-0. The next game will be crucial for the Nets and Durant is well aware of that.
