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Brooklyn Nets

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Gallery: Love the work

Tom Dowd

The upending of the NBA calendar has shed the symmetry of some events, so it was actually 11 months ago, not 12, that Cam Thomas, Day’Ron Sharpe and the rest of Brooklyn’s bountiful rookie class for the 2021-22 season was navigating the final days before the NBA Draft, as this year’s prospects are as they wait to hear their names called from the stage at Barclays Center on Thursday night.

It ended up being a deep draft class indeed for Brooklyn. General manager Sean Marks used all four picks he had going in — a first-rounder and three seconds — then traded back in to grab another first-round pick and added the undrafted David Duke Jr. as a rookie free agent. Duke and second-round pick Kessler Edwards would eventually earn two-way contracts and see their share of NBA court time as rookies.

The Nets sent Thomas, Sharpe, Edwards, Duke, and second-rounders Marcus Zegarowski and Raiquan Gray to Las Vegas for Summer League last August, where Thomas in particular made a big first impression with high scoring, clutch shots, and co-MVP honors.

“It was a great start to my professional career basically,” said Thomas. “Just me having the opportunity to show off my skills and show that I could at least play at that level at some point to start off with was big for me. I just wanted to prove myself. Being a later draft pick, you always want to prove yourself to everybody. I just played with a chip on my shoulder and a lot of good things came out of it.”

In September, Nets head coach Steve Nash discussed the prospects for the rookie class shortly before the team departed for training camp in San Diego.

“They guys have been in the gym a lot for a few weeks now, and that’s the positive,” said Nash. “They worked hard. I think we see NBA players in them, and it’s just a matter of developing them all. It’s a tough team to break into, so some of these rookies have their work cut out for them if they’re going to get in the rotation for sure. But that’s a great challenge for them.

“I was a 15th pick who only played my rookie year when KJ (Suns star Kevin Johnson) was injured. It’s not how you start, it’s how you get there. That’s what I definitely have preached to some of our rookies already. You’ve got to play the long game, and whether you crash the rotation or not, whether you don’t play a minute or spend some time in the G League, it’s important to think long-term and not give away days. If you have that mentality and attitude, this will be a very productive year for you whether you play or don’t play.”

As the NBA prepares to welcome a new rookie class and Brooklyn’s Class of ’21 looks forward to another round of Summer League and taking the next step in their NBA careers, let’s take a look back at year one with the Nets.

Four days after the draft, the Nets introduced Thomas and Sharpe at HSS Training Center, joined by Marks and Nash.

“We love what they do from a competitive standpoint,” said Marks. “They’ll fit right in. I know they both own the fact that there’s a big development curve. We’re fortunate to have these guys and watch them develop.”

“These are young, young guys coming into this league, and they both have the potential to play in this league,” said Nash. “They’ve got to earn it and prove it on a contending team. They both may very well earn minutes but they both may not, and that doesn’t mean that we’re discouraged in any way. We want to develop these guys regardless of whether they play or don’t play. So this is a long-term play that may happen quicker than we think and they may earn minutes right away, but if not, we’re just as excited about their long-term development. They’ll have to stay the course and work on the intangibles and all the things that they need to do on the court. So we’re just excited that they’re talented young guys and come into our program, can bring energy, life spirit and hopefully contribute on the floor, but if not, we’re just as excited about their long-term future.”

The full class was on hand as the Long Island Nets opened up the G League season with Duke, Edwards, Sharpe, and Thomas all in the starting lineup. Sharpe had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds, while Thomas showed off the same scoring touch from Summer League with 33 points. Thomas would make just one more G League appearance during his rookie year, putting up 46 points on 17-of-32 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists in a 114-110 win over Raptors 905 on Nov. 20. Two days later, opportunity knocked at the NBA level.

With the Nets looking for a little extra scoring punch in the wake of Joe Harris’ ankle injury, Thomas became the first Nets rookie to get significant rotation minutes, and he made an impact right away. In a 117-112 win at Cleveland, Thomas contributed 11 points in just 15 minutes on 4-of-7 shooting.

“Cam was great,” said Nash afterwards. “He stepped up with confidence to take shots. I think he is a kid who we all love and think has a bright future, but sometimes these early stages of the season you’re in tight games. It’s difficult, just some of the mistakes that are inevitable with these young guys. But tonight he really hung in there. Made some big shots for us and I thought was really aware defensively. I was proud of him tonight.”

“It just gives you more confidence that the coach actually believes in you to come in in games like this to spark a run for the team,” said Thomas. “I played great defense, sparked a run like that, hit open shots when KD kicked it to me, and Patty, when they kicked it to me in the corner, both corner 3s. I feel like everything’s a building block for me to keep it going from here on out.”

Nets fans also got their first sense of the confidence that fuels Thomas, as well as the growing connection between the rookie and Kevin Durant. In the postgame media session, Thomas put himself in the same category as Durant as a scorer at a similar age and declared he was the winner of a one-on-one matchup with the NBA’s active leader in scoring average.

Durant shot that all down when it was his turn at the mic but discussed what he had seen from Thomas so far.

“We just talk the game,” said Durant. “I wouldn’t call it mentoring. We’re just exchanging information. He’s seeing my game from a different vantage point coming off the bench, I’m seeing his game, so we just exchange information and go over stuff that we see and try to sharpen our skills and out tools and our IQ as mental basketball players first. It’s good to see a young dude like Cam who is into it like that. You can tell he’s a student. We need him to build on this. We don’t need him to be comfortable because he had a little 11-point game, because he made a couple shots. I’m always on him, and he’s always on me, too, but I’m going to be on him even more now.”

With the season behind him as he did his summer workouts and looked forward to year two, Thomas looked back on Durant’s impact through his rookie year.

“It’s good to have a relationship with a guy like that,” said Thomas. “You just always want to pick his brain, have fun. Just ask him little stuff even when you’re out there playing together, just have fun. I really enjoyed the time that we was out there playing together. He let me play my game and obviously he’s going to do his thing, so you just want to sit back, watch, pick his brain, and help in any way you can, honestly.”

It was the week nobody could see coming. As the Nets and the NBA were hit by the wave that forced huge numbers of players into health and safety protocols, the rookie class took center stage for two inspiring wins. Duke, Edwards, and Thomas all made their first career starts that week, while Sharpe saw his first significant playing time as the Nets rang up wins against Toronto on Dec. 14 and Philadelphia on Dec. 16.

“It definitely is a bit of an unknown when you throw them in like that, when you throw all of them in like that,” said Nash after the win over the Sixers. “That’s one thing. I think you’ve got to tip your hat to the rookies and you’ve got to tip your hat to our G League coaching staff. They’ve done a great job of presenting them with our system, and developing them, teaching them. That’s a huge component, too, they deserve a lot of credit. That’s I think the quality system that we have in place here, to put these four guys out there to play and our team hasn’t missed a beat. They’re playing the right way, they’re playing for each other and they’re being physical. I think the expectations were unknown, but I think the belief was there. We believe in these guys. We think that they are good players and have a future in this league. But you never know. Like I said, when you throw them all in there together, there’s an experience gap. But these guys come to play.”

Duke started three straight games that week, played 30-plus minutes each night, and posted a pair of double-doubles — 10 points and 13 rebounds against the Raptors and 18 points and 14 rebounds against the Magic.

“He does a lot of things on the basketball floor,” said Nash after the Dec. 14 overtime win against the Raptors. “He's a physical, athletic, strong defender. Like you saw he can get his hands on the ball, deflections, steals, offensive rebounds. He's also a pretty good playmaker. He can get in the paint and make good decisions. So he does a lot of things. We've always liked him and we see a great future for him. But to see him get out there tonight in his first kind of extended action — or second I guess, with the Houston game, but tonight was really extended — and to see him respond that way was obviously kind of reinforcing what we what we see as an organization.”

Edwards went 44 minutes in the overtime win against Toronto with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Thomas played 45 minutes against the Sixers and scored 11 points with four rebounds and four assists.

“Thankfully we had been with the team through training camp and stuff and for me I was going back and forth with the team and to the G League,” said Edwards. “Before that happened, I was actually playing with the G League team which I think personally kept me ready because I was playing heavy minutes over there so when I came and had to play a lot I was used to it. I was kind of ready as opposed to just having been sitting on the bench.”

“They've played hard, they've been physical, they've not been afraid,” said Nash in summing up the group’s performance in the two wins. “You know, the most important thing that we've tried to instill in them is we want you to develop, we want to teach we want to give you an opportunity to make mistakes, but also be you, be free out there, play good basketball, and we believe in you. So, you know, watching them kind of accept that challenge and go for it physically mentally has been outstanding.”

The big man’s turn came back around in January. After scoring 14 points on perfect 6-of-6 shooting with seven rebounds in Portland, Sharpe had a big encore two nights later in Chicago on Jan. 12 in a 138-112 win.

Making his first career start, Sharpe had 20 points on 10-of-14 shooting with seven rebounds.

“Day’Ron gives us something different,” said Nash after the game. “He’s got great hands. He’s physical. He’s got a knack for a few things out there on the floor for a 20-year-old. We have confidence in him. Probably not going to be like that every night for a rookie, but that’s the player we know is in there. It’s just a matter of how quickly can he develop and what kind of role does he have long-term.”

The Chicago game was the first of eight straight stars for Sharpe and he saw regular rotation minutes for much of the next month, averaging 7.3 rebounds in just 18.7 minutes per game — a per-36 rebounding rate of 14.1 — over 15 games.

There were 10 seconds to go and the Nets had put the ball and the game in the hands of Cam Thomas. After trailing the Knicks by as many as 28 points at Madison Square Garden, they were up by three when Thomas side-stepped into a top-of-the-key 3-pointer with 7.7 seconds remaining that locked up a historic comeback win.

Thomas had already scored seven straight points to turn a 97-92 deficit into a 99-97 lead when he knocked down a 19-footer with 3:58 to go.

“I think he has a deep belief in his ability,” said Nash. “I think he seeks those moments, so that’s something that’s inside him that is rare. That’s an innate talent. I think his teammates have belief in him, so that allows his belief to be fortified. I thought the way he played down the stretch, he made the game-winner and all that, but he made a bunch of plays down the stretch. We went to him, a rookie carrying the load in a rivalry game like this in the Garden, it shows you what’s inside of Cam.”

Thomas finished up with 21 points, part of string of nine consecutive double-figure scoring games during which he averaged 20.1 points per game. It began with a career-high 30-point night in Utah 12 days earlier.

“I'm not surprised by what he's doing at all,” said Durant in the middle of that run. “He's a gamer and he loves to play. I think the other aspects of his game are starting to grow and that comes with just experience and understanding the game plan and just being a true pro. He's building his routine, he's figuring out what works for him as a pro and that usually takes time for 19, 20-year-olds coming into the league, it's about that routine. So when you see consistent games like that, behind the scenes you can get an idea of how he's working or how he's figuring out how to move as a professional, so it's cool to see in real time.”

On the final day of the regular season, Edwards got a promotion.

While working on a two-way contract, Edwards had earned a regular spot in the Brooklyn rotation over the final month of the season. But two-way deals come with limitations, so in order for Edwards to be eligible for the playoffs, he was signed to a standard contract. It was a nice way to cap the season for the previous summer’s 44th overall pick.

“He comes in every day with a focus and a work ethic and a willingness to learn,” said Nash before the Nets closed out the regular season that afternoon against the Indiana Pacers. “What’s so important to a player’s development is their mindset. So, he has a great mindset. He has some skills and talents with his length and athleticism to build on as far as a defender. And we know he’s a capable three-point shooter. He shot the ball very well for us. The mindset, allowing him to improve and develop in the first half of the season, get his chance and take it. Second half, he had a little bit of a rough patch. To rebound from that and play good basketball on this stretch just shows that he has a great mindset.”

Now it’s on to the next stage for the whole group. Unlike a year ago, the 2021 draft class has a full summer to work on their games and benefit from the guidance of Brooklyn’s coaching and performance teams. Their return to Las Vegas for Summer League in early July will mark the unofficial start of year two in the NBA: rookies no more.

“I just think that I’ll be a little more confident and comfortable this time around having been through it before especially with some NBA games under my belt,” said Edwards. “I know the work that it takes and we’re working hard this whole month. I think we’ll be ready for Summer League and be more confident heading into it.”

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Rookie Year Remembrances as Next Stage Beckons for Brooklyn Nets Class of '21

As part of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary celebration, the Brooklyn Nets have unveiled their Legacy Project to mark the league’s anniversary with the re-opening of the renovated Joseph Miccio Community Center Fitness Room in Red Hook.

The Voice of the Brooklyn Nets, Olivier Sedra, served as MC for the event, as BSE Global Executive Vice President of Community Relations and Communications Mandy Gutmann was joined by Michelle Yanche, Executive Director of Good Shepherd Services, Roland Knight, Sr. Program Director of the Joseph Miccio Community Center, Coucilmember Alexa Aviles, and Nets Legend Albert King.

The fitness room was damaged during Hurricane Ida in 2021 and was unusable until the renovation. “To commemorate the NBA’s 75th Anniversary, teams from around the league have been working hard to renovate spaces in their communities,” said Gutmann. “Particularly, we’re focused on spaces where youth live, learn, and play and this is a space where youth definitely learn and play, so very fitting, which is why we identified this space as our 75th Anniversary Legacy Project.”

The Miccio Community Center serves families from the NYCHA Red Hook Houses with programming throughout the year. “Healthy living, first and foremost,” said Knight. “We want to try a culinary program we have as far as teaching our youth how to cook and eat right and eat clean and then combine that with a physical workout. We also want to use this space as a mentoring space, not just to work out but to have conversations about working out, the importance of being physically fit and being able to have discussions here.”

As part of the renovation, the Nets provided treadmills, a bike machine, weights and racks, benches, and other multifunctional equipment. In addition, the space was decorated with three murals. “This represents Red Hook,” said Knight. “It represents the Miccio. It represents each and every one of us. Every one in this room, all our participants. We all want peace and we all want unity and unfortunately that’s been very hard the last couple years, especially during the pandemic, but I think we’re on the road to recovery.”

Good Shepherd Services manages the Miccio Community Center Fitness Room and operates over 80 programs serving nearly 30,000 youth and family members throughout New York City. “The young people want to be engaged in activity and we’ve got to make those things available,” said Yanche. “For young people to get involved in healthy exercise and activity, I think post-pandemic, because we’re all needing to be more active, to exercise again, I think it’s going to be a real draw.”

Gutmann offered thanks to the NBA, New York City Department of Youth and Community Development, Good Shepherd Services, NYCHA, and the Miccio Community Center. “Brooklyn Nets, it’s been a pleasure, it’s been an honor,” said Knight. “I can’t begin to speak on how important this is for our community. I’m looking forward to continuing this partnership because as I said to other people this is just the first step in taking our community center to the place it needs to be and that’s a place where everyone can go.”

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Brooklyn Nets Unveil Renovated Joseph Miccio Community Center Fitness Room

For NBA FIT Week, the Brooklyn Nets partnered with Children of Promise and The Campaign Against Hunger to create an urban farm experience. They gave local kids a hands-on experience around a program whose goal is to provide local communities with the resources to make healthy choice for the mind, body and spirit.

Founded in 2009, Children of Promise is the only after-school program and summer day camp in New York City designed to meet the needs, interests and concerns of children who have a parent in prison. “The purpose and the goal, the mission of this organization, is to provide resources to families who’ve been impacted by mass incarceration,” said Bob McNeil, a program manager with the organization. “This shows up in mentorship programs for the kids. It shows up in after-school services for the kids, mental health services. It shows up in volunteering.”

The Campaign Against Hunger has grown from a small basement pantry to an organization offering hundreds of classes, workshops and demonstrations each year with a full suite of social services. “The Campaign Against Hunger is a 23-year-old organization,” said Racquel Grant, the group’s development director. “We’ve been working in the anti-hunger space and our mission is to empower those we serve to live healthier, more productive, and self-sufficient lives by increasing their access to emergency food with dignity.”

The event included a visit to one of The Campaign Against Hunger’s urban farms, in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and a healthy cooking workshop with the group’s executive chef.

“The Brooklyn Nets is not just the players you see on TV,” said McNeil. “It’s an organization who cares about the community that it’s in as you hear by the philanthropy that the players to themselves, but outside of the players, those who are part of the organization. It makes it real. It makes it tangible. Not only can I have a relationship by buying tickets and going to see the Brooklyn Nets play. They’re in my community, helping me.”

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Brooklyn Nets Partner with Children of Promise and The Campaign Against Hunger

The last two Brooklyn Nets wins have featured dominance from Kevin Durant, but they haven’t been one-man shows.

Against Portland last Friday, after Durant led the third-quarter surge that got the Nets even after trailing by 13 at halftime, Brooklyn opened the fourth quarter with a 10-0 run with Durant on the bench on the way to a 128-123 win. In Monday’s 114-106 win over the Utah Jazz at Barclays Center, Durant went for 37 points in 38 minutes and the Nets still outscored the Jazz in their 10 minutes playing without Durant in a 114-106 win.

“It’s just amazing,” said Durant. “Every player loves that, when you’re on the bench and your guys are turning up like that. I mean, Patty (Mills) came in and hit some huge shots. I’m so proud of Blake (Griffin). He’s just a consummate pro, haven’t played in a whole month and come out and hit nine points, four rebounds – he just did everything for us in his minutes. Just happy that we got guys on this team that stay ready and want to go out there and destroy opponents. If we get up 10 or 12, we’re looking for Patty to try and shot a three to take it up a notch so I appreciate them.”

In the nine games since he returned from a knee sprain, Durant has been Durant, and the Nets’ fortunes — both individual and collective — have risen around him. The Nets have now won six of their last seven, with the single loss a buzzer-beater from Dallas.

Over their last nine games, the Nets have averaged 122.3 points and 28.7 assists, shooting 53.4 percent overall and 41.5 percent from 3-point range. Each of those numbers is higher than the NBA’s No. 1 rates over the course of the full 2021-22 season.

“I think some nights they’re doubling Kevin which is allowing the rest of the guys to play 4 on 3,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash after Friday’s win over Portland. “We keep preaching to play with pace, make quick decisions, share the ball and largely I think our team’s grown in that aspect over the last three, four weeks.”

Go back to that lone loss from the last two weeks, last Wednesday against the Mavericks. While Durant scored 23 points, five other Nets were in double figures, starting with Goran Dragic with 21 points. Bruce Brown — in the middle of a major surge of his own — had 17. Andre Drummond went for 14 points and 17 rebounds, while Nic Claxton had 13 and rookie Kessler Edwards was good for 12.

Against Portland, Brown and Drummond each had 17, but it was Curry who made the Blazers pay for blitzing Durant straight out of the opening tip. Curry scored 27 on 9-of-14 shooting, including 7-of-11 from 3-point range. He hit two 3-pointers in the 10-0 run that opened the fourth quarter and tilted the game in Brooklyn’s favor for good.

All those double teams didn’t slow Durant by the way — he hit the Blazers for 38 points on 11-of-15 shooting and made 14-of-15 free throws. Over his last two games, Durant has averaged 37.5 points while making 26-of-38 shots (68.4 percent).

That brought Utah into town, with the Jazz in fourth place in a Western Conference race that has picked up strength as the season has gone on. The Nets were without Drummond due to illness, then lost Curry in the second quarter to an ankle sprain.

Durant had his 37 on 15-of-23 shooting plus nine rebounds and eight assists. Brown went for 22 on 7-of-14 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists. Claxton got the start at center and had 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting and a nice synergy with Durant on lobs. Mills had 13 points while making 3-of-9 3-pointers, moving him into second place on the franchise’s single-season list for 3-pointers made with 212 — that’s also the sixth most in the NBA this season. The Nets also got 20 quality minutes from Griffin at center in place of Drummond.

“We’re rallying around each other,” said Durant. “We’re making big plays. We’re just doing it together more than anything, just a collective effort. You see Seth went down tonight, and Kessler came in and did a great job on the ball defensively. Then you see Cam (Thomas) come in – and then without Drum – Blake and Clax played well. So it’s good for people to get an opportunity to play, but it’s good to have a deep team like that that we can throw guys in that’s been in the fire before.”

Brown’s 22 points were a season high. Over the last 17 games, he’s averaging 14.4 points on 52.0 percent shooting with 6.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. The Nets had 31 assists — their fourth time in the last seven games with at least 30 assists — and shot 54.2 percent.

“We’re learning, we’re getting some cohesion, we’re understanding how to play together, to play through Kevin, to play off Kevin, to play when they blitz him, double him, to be aggressive and play together,” said Nash. “At times I think tonight, 31 assists, 14 turnovers, a few were late otherwise it was a very efficient offensive game.”

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Kevin Durant and Brooklyn Nets Hit an Offensive Rhythm

With the Brooklyn Nets up by a point on the New York Knicks in the waning seconds on Sunday afternoon at Barclays Center, the visitors inbounded with 13.4 seconds remaining and the ball went to New York’s Evan Fournier in the corner. As the Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson slipped into space in the lane, Bruce Brown closed out hard and deflected Fournier’s pass, breaking up the play. The ball went to the Nets and Kevin Durant made four free throws in the final 10 seconds to lock down the 110-107 win, Brooklyn’s third straight.

Defense is the calling card that brought Brown to the NBA as a second-round pick out of Miami in 2018, and the 6-foot-4 guard’s impact and intensity on that end has never waned. On the other end, he’s reinvented himself more than once over his four years in the league while turning himself into a box score-filling utilityman.

Sunday’s stat sheet was a perfect example: 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting with seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals. It also was consistent with the level Brown has been at since he moved into the starting lineup back on Feb. 12.

“Bruce has been great,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash. “Locked in defensively. We’ve pushed him to find his indentity down there. He’s been really solid with the game plan. Pitches in with 15 points, five assists, seven rebounds, two steals. It’s just winning basketball plays he makes over and over. Love his competitiveness, his spirit, and defensively he’s really locked in.”

A year ago, Brown carved out a unique role that defied easy categorization. With the Nets short on big men, Nash started using Brown as a screener, and as defenders clung to ball-handlers and shooters arrayed around the floor, he slipped into open space and sliced teams apart in the paint. In a big man’s role, Brown played much larger than his size. His 55.6 field goal percentage was the second-highest in the league for a player measuring 6-4 or under. Brown also averaged 5.4 rebounds in 22.3 minutes per game, a per-36 rate of 8.7 that was also No. 2 in the league, behind triple-double machine Russell Westbrook.

But circumstances and personnel around Brown shifted, and at the beginning of this season the offensive opportunities that presented themselves a year ago weren’t as available. He had to go back to finding a way to fit in.

“Early in the season it was all mental for me,” said Brown. “I was trying to fit in the role that I had last year and it wasn't working. So I got kind of frustrated and that's when I kind of got out of the rotation.”

He dug back in on more traditional guard skills, but in a Brooklyn rotation that has seen a lot of shifting throughout the season, it took a while to regain a foothold. In the 14 games before he moved back into the starting lineup, Brown averaged 3.9 points per game and scored in double-figures just once.

Over Brooklyn’s last 13 games, Brown is averaging 13.8 points on 53.5 percent shooting. He’s hitting the boards for 5.8 rebounds per game, a higher rate than he finished last season with, and also averaging 3.0 assists, 1.7 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game. After attempting just 0.8 3-pointers per game through Brooklyn’s first 55 games, Brown is launching 2.1 per game and hitting at 44.4 percent since Feb. 12.

“Last year, we used him as a screener and roller to the rim and he is effective in that role,” said Kevin Durant. “But now, I think it helped him and his development as a player playing in different spots on the floor. So this year, he’s playing like an all-around player. Guard, shooting threes, getting it off the rim, defending as he always does. Seven rebounds, five assists, two steals. Fifteen points. He is playing with ultimate confidence. I look at Bruce as still a younger player, and when you start to see younger players figure out what they want to do in this league, it’s fun to see in real time. I’m just excited he’s getting better and better. He’s not complacent with where he is right now. I can tell you that.”

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Nets Notes: Bruce Brown is Back for Brooklyn

It’s been a week for the Brooklyn Nets.

A week ago, Kevin Durant passed the 25,000 career point milestone, becoming just the 23rd player in NBA history to do so. At his current rate of 29.0 points per game for the season, Durant is on pace to pass both Jerry West (25,192) and Reggie Miller (25,279) before the end of the year and move into 21st place all-time. Durant is also third in total points among active players behind LeBron James (36,793) and Carmelo Anthony (28,157) while his career scoring average of 27.1 points per game leads all active players.

“I told him in the locker room, 25,000 points — you're a savant,” said Kyrie Irving after the Boston game last Sunday. “You are an artist, you have eclipsed history and he will forever be remembered as a legend in our game. I mean he's been doing it since he was 19 and there's a level of admiration I have for my best friend right there and he just does it in ways that makes it look easy. Even when he takes six weeks off he looks like he hasn't missed any time and that level of work ethic that he puts in it shows why he's as great as he is.”

Two nights later, it was Irving’s turn with one of the great scoring displays in NBA history. He put up 50 points in a win over Charlotte on 15-for-19 shooting (78.9 percent). It was the second-fewest field goal attempts in a 50-point game in NBA history and it made Irving the fifth player in NBA history to have at least two career games with 50 points while shooting 75 percent or better.

“Everything he does is pure,” said Durant. “It looked so easy tonight. I look up he had 10 points and it felt like he only took two shots in the first quarter and I told Seth (Curry), ‘I'm like, damn, I didn’t know he had it cooking like that.’ And I seen it in his eyes to start the game. You know he wanted to play better last game, so he came out here tonight and wanted to impact the game from the start. He led us all night, he hit big shots when we needed to. And it was just incredible, incredible performance. It’s something like…younger players, you should watch this game learn what it takes to score at that level. At 5-10, 5-11 for him to score that easy, that was just a masterclass.”

Then came Thursday night, a much-anticipated, post-trade collision with the 76ers in Philadelphia — where the Nets ran wild in taking control with 72 first-half points and eventually leading by as many as 32 points in a 129-100 win.

“We always had confidence in ourselves,” said Durant. “I wouldn’t say this game, it was one of those games that just built our confidence even more, this was just a regular game and we were excited that we came out here and executed the game plan. We’re going to need to do that going forward if we want to put ourselves in good position. It’s just another one on the schedule and we’re looking forward to the next one.”

Finally, on Sunday afternoon, the Nets made it three wins in a row with a 110-107 win over the Knicks at Barclays Center. That made it six straight wins against New York over the last two seasons and an 11-3 edge over the last four years.

Durant threw a bookend on a memorable week with 53 points, one shy of his career-high, and his second 50-point game of the season. Durant shot 19-for-37 and had nine assists and six rebounds.

With the Nets trailing 73-71 midway through the third quarter, Durant scored Brooklyn’s next seven points to push the Nets back in the lead. They stretched the advantage as Bruce Brown scored eight straight — with three of the baskets coming off Durant assists — before Durant’s jumper made it an 88-79 lead.

In the final minute of the game, Durant broke a 103-103 tie with a go-ahead 3-pointer, then iced the game from the foul line.

“Kevin was unbelievable, obviously,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash. “Carried us. Made a lot of big plays. Rebounds, assists, the whole deal. He was Kevin Durant on full display but I think also you’ve got to tip your hat to all the other guys that did so many things out there. Andre (Drummond) had another big night. I thought Nic Claxton was great with his energy and defense. Bruce Brown continues his great play. (James Johnson) brought it and gave us minutes and Goran (Dragic) is just a soldier out there organizing us and doing all those little things. I could go on but it’s a team win and Kevin carried us in a lot of ways but without those other guys, it’s not happening.”

With 18 points and 10 rebounds — making all eight of his field goal attempts — Drummond posted his fourth double-double in 11 games as a Net.

“I feel like when Drum simplifies the game, he’s a force,” said Durant. “He’s rolling to the rim, rebounding our misses, running the floor, defending like he did, protecting the rim, he has nights like this easily. Double-doubles for him. He can do that in his sleep. It’s all about staying focused and asking his teammates to put him in good conditions to be successful.”

Brown slid into the starting lineup shortly before the All-Star break and in those 12 consecutive starts going into Sunday’s game was averaging 13.7 points on 53.9 percent shooting, making him Brooklyn’s fourth-leading scorer during that stretch. He had also made 46.2 percent of his 3-pointers on 2.2 attempts per game with both numbers representing big jumps on his rates for the full season. The 6-foot-4 guard has also continued to play big on the boards with 5.7 rebounds per game.

Against the Knicks, Brown had 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists.

“Bruce has been great. Locked in defensively,” said Nash. “We’ve pushed him to find his identity down there. He’s been really solid with the game plan. Pitches in with 15 points, five assists, seven rebounds, two steals. It’s just winning basketball plays he makes over and over. Love his competitiveness, his spirit, and defensively he’s really locked in.”

With all those contributions, the Nets hung on for the win.

“I thought the guys found a way,” said Nash. “I think we missed three or our last 26 threes. Find a way to win when you can’t make a three it’s always a good win. So we didn’t have our best stuff today. We didn’t make shots but we found a way to hold them to what was it, 47 in the second half. Proud of the effort, proud of the mentality to stick with it even when things weren’t easy.”

kevin-durant-brooklyn-nets-cap-dramatic-week-with-win-over-new-york-knicks

Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets Cap Dramatic Week With Win Over New York Knicks

With a place in the basketball pantheon that is already well-assured, Kevin Durant continues to cross off new milestones and elevate himself into territories of the NBA’s most accomplished players.

With his 37 points against the Boston Celtics on Sunday afternoon, Durant became the 23rd player in NBA history to surpass 25,000 career points and in doing so joined Dirk Nowitzki as the only two players to ever compile 25,000 points, 5,000 rebounds, 1,000 steals, 1,000 blocks, and 1,000 3-pointers made.

“Kevin’s incredible,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash. “I could sit here for an hour talking about Kevin Durant and the ability, the sacrifices, the resilience, the passion for the game. That’s what you see out there. You see obviously someone who has gifts but someone who has worked to master and refine those gifts endlessly. He’s come back from some big injuries and continued to play at an equally high level every single time even well into his 30s here. That’s an impressive, impressive resume and it’s because of all the work on top of the gifts he has.”

In terms of total games played, Durant is the seventh-fastest player to 25,000 points in his 922nd game. Only Wilt Chamberlain (691), Michael Jordan (782), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (889), LeBron James (915), Oscar Robertson (917), and Jerry West (920) got there faster. He’s third in career total points among active players behind James (36,720) and Carmelo Anthony (28,120). Durant’s career scoring average of 27.1 is the highest among active players and fourth in NBA history.

Already this season, Durant surpassed Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, and Patrick Ewing on the all-time list. At his current scoring rate of 29.3 points per game, Durant would move past West (25,192) and Reggie Miller (25,279) by the end of the season, leaving him 21st all-time behind No. 20 Alex English (25,613) with former Nets Vince Carter (25,728) and Kevin Garnett (26,071) next to come.

“It's pretty cool,” said Durant. “I should be at 30 right now to be honest, but it's cool. It's cool to reach that milestone and be amongst the greats and I just got to keep pushing and keep going and see where I end up.”

Durant was in his second game back after missing 21 games due to a knee sprain. At the time, he was leading the league in scoring with 29.3 points per game. He returned with 31 points against the Heat on Thursday, leaving him 33 points away from the milestone going into Sunday’s afternoon game in Boston.

Durant scored 12 points in the first quarter, had 19 at halftime, and entered the fourth quarter with 28 points, just five shy of the milestone. With 6:08 remaining the game, he pulled up on the right wing just outside the lane and drained a historic 14-footer.

Afterwards, Kyrie Irving saluted his teammate’s accomplishment.

“I told him in the locker room, 25,000 points,” said Irving. “You’re a savant. You are an artist. You have eclipsed history and you will forever be remembered as a legend in our game. He’s been doing this since he was 19 and there’s a level of admiration that I have for my best friend right there. He just does it in ways that makes it look easy and even when he takes six weeks off it’s like he hasn’t missed any time and that level of work ethic that he puts in, it shows why he’s as great as he is.”