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Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant has been on a tear to start this NBA season and in the Nets’ first 11 games looks like a very strong candidate to win this year’s Most Valuable Player award. So far this season the 11-time NBA All-Star is averaging 29.5 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game. He has eclipsed the 20-point mark in every game this season for the Nets and is shooting a scorching 56.9% from the field. Durant is more than two years removed from suffering an Achilles tear that sidelined him for a season, but seeing him continue to put forth this valiant of an effort is nothing short of impressive.
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Kevin Durant and Charles Barkley Settle Longtime Feud
Durant and the Nets had a turbulent year in 2020. One of the highlights of that turbulent season was when Durant had a post-game interview with inside the NBA host Charles Barkley after his first game back from his Achilles injury against his former team the Golden State Warriors.
Barkley asked Durant an at-length question about his injury recovery to which Durant responded with a lackluster “yea.” This prompted some to believe that Durant was shading Barkley who has had some controversial opinions on KD in the past. But Durant insists that was not the case.
“You made a statement and I thought you were going ask a follow-up,” Durant told Barkley during a dual podcast episode of KD’s podcast “The ETCs” and “Inside the NBA.So, it was a misunderstanding.”
Barkley responded to the Nets star telling Durant that the moment “made great TV.”
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Kevin Durant Sounds off on Kyrie’s Absence
For those who may not know, the Nets have benched their superstar point guard Kyrie Irving until he gets vaccinated for COVID-19. There is no timetable for when or if Kyrie will return and James Harden has struggled out of the gates. But somehow Brooklyn has managed to keep their heads above water as they sit at 7-4 and 6th place in the Eastern Conference playoff standings. While the Nets are still optimistic that their superstar will eventually return this season, Durant says that they cannot focus on that. They have to roll with the available guys that they have.
“It’s going well. I mean, I think we understand the situation we’re in, and a lot of guys got to step up and play different roles. I mean, we all think, like, he may come back. Who knows? But for now, we’ve got … We still have to play the games with the guys we have here,” said Durant.
“Everybody’s been locked-in on that since Day 1 of the season. Just, like, let’s focus on who’s in the locker room and once that situation is figured out, we’ll adjust back to that. But for now, everybody’s just trying to figure out their roles on this team. And at this point, it’s been exciting trying to figure that out.”
For the Nets their season has been far from ideal but the position that they are in now is not terrible either. Although the team still has a way to go, they can be optimistic about the fact that they have a lot of time to improve. They will try to get back on track in their next game against the Orlando Magic.
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