The Nets are really miserable! Against the Raptors, the Nets are 9 out of the game, and only 8 players can play, of which Durant still fights with injuries. A total of seven players, Harden, Brown, Ader, Bemburi, Carter, James Johnson and Millsap, triggered a health and safety deal to miss the game. Irving was banned from the team for not getting vaccinated, and Joe Harris has been absent for a long time due to surgery.
Although the Nets only had 8 players to play, the team was pleasantly surprised. The Nets' three youngsters broke out in this game, led by Durant 34+13+11, to help the team win the Raptors 131-129 overtime. At present, the Nets' record has reached 20 wins and 8 losses, 2.5 wins ahead of the Bulls, who are no. 2 in the East, and basically sit on the no. 1 position in the Eastern Conference record list.
David Duke, 22, made his first career start and his third game for the Nets. He played 37.7 minutes in the game, and although he shot relatively low, scoring only 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting, he grabbed 13 rebounds as a 193cm guard, and also delivered 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks.
Kessler Edwards is a two-way contract player for the Nets, with a height of 2.03 meters, the standard small forward height. Prior to this game, he had a total of 2 appearances, adding up to 11.8 minutes. He was heavily used by Nash in this game, playing 43.7 minutes in the game, shooting 7 of 12 from 7 of 3-pointers, 6 of 3 from three-point range, and finishing with 17 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.
Sharp is the No. 29 pick in the first round of 2021. In just 13.2 minutes of the game, he scored 7 points, 7 rebounds and 1 block on 3-of-3 shooting. The Nets' interior line is the team's biggest weakness, and for the young center player, hopefully Nash can give a little more time.
Now look, Nash has a lot of players who can play under his hand, and when the hands were not so tight before, these players basically did not get many opportunities. Although the absence of 9 players in the team is a bad thing, it gives these young players the opportunity to emerge. I hope that when the Nets return healthy, Nash can rationally adjust the lineup, do not let Durant play too long, and let Durant rest more.
After all, Durant is a player who has suffered a major injury, and his recent playing time has been a bit too long! In the last 8 games, Durant has played 38+! Durant has averaged 36.9 minutes per game this season, ranking second in the league!