Kevin Durant didn't expect such a big change to occur with his injury to the Brooklyn Nets. The team's record plummeted, and James Harden, frustrated and disappointed, finally chose to leave himself and go to Philadelphia. He was outspoken about the condition of his team on Saturday local time, and the Nets have a 2-12 record since he sprained his medial secondary ligament in his left knee in mid-January.
"I know we're deeply in trouble." Durant said, "Don't get me wrong. We also understand the current situation, but as long as we win the next game, things will change completely. ”
The expected victory did not come. On February 13, the Brooklyn Nets lost 111-115 away to the Miami Heat, suffering an 11-game losing streak, the league's longest losing streak. The Nets have fallen all the way down to eighth from their Top of the Eastern Conference on Jan. 22 and are likely to continue to fall. They are now 2.5 games behind the sixth-placed Toronto Raptors and seventh-place Boston Celtics, who will play against the Celtics at home on the 25th.
With three of the next four games at home, the only away game is against the New York Knicks, so Kyrie Irving won't be able to play for the Nets. In the game against the Heat, Irving scored 29 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, and scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to help the Nets chase the 21-point gap to just one point. Cameron Thomas had 22 points, four rebounds and four assists, and Kessler Edwards had 13 points, five rebounds and three steals.
Thomas hit a three-pointer with 37 seconds left in the game to leave the Nets trailing the Heat 109-110. When Jimmy Butler hit one of two free throws, the score came to 111-113 and the Nets had the ball and they had a chance to equalize or take the lead. However, the Nets were unable to get the ball into Irving's hands, and Kyle Lowry stole Thomas's pass, which was then given to P.J. Tucker. Tucker hit both free throws after being fouled.
"Although defeated and honored. But to be honest, this game belongs to the most determined people, to the most disciplined team. After discovering the Nets' lack of will, Irving said.
After Bruce Brown scored two points to the Nets to take a 34-31 lead, the Heat sent a 9-0 spurt to a 40-34 lead with Max Strus' three-pointer. In the third quarter, the Nets led 69-61 but were still beaten 20-7 by the Heat.
It took Irving a huge effort to regain the chance to win for the Nets, and then Lowry stole everything again. Nets rookie Dai Ron Sharp said: "This time it's really uncomfortable, we've lost 11 games in a row. We have to get rid of it, the next game, we're going to come with the mentality of winning no matter what. ”
The Nets have lost 18 of their last 24 games. New signings Seth Curry and Andre Drummond were traded to the Nets alongside Harden in a trade with Ben Simmons, but because Harden had not yet passed the 76ers' physical exam, they couldn't make their debut against the Heat. Curry Jr. and Drummond's first game is likely to be the next game against the Sacramento Kings.
The Nets are desperate for new reinforcements, no Durant, No Irving, no Ben Simmons. Ahead of the All-Star Game, Simmons was still stepping up his training to get on the court. The Nets are known to have only 26 games left this season, 11 of which are on the road, but due to the epidemic policy regulations in Toronto and New York, Irving will not be able to play in away games against the Raptors and Knicks. So, Irving's next appearance is expected to be in the Nets' game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Feb. 27.
Owen remains incomprehensibly insistent, he has not been vaccinated and does not like to hear reporters ask him questions about it. In a post-game interview, when asked if he felt guilty about not being able to play, Irving was somewhat irritated.
Owen said: "I don't feel guilty. I was the only player who had to deal with it all in New York because I was playing here. If I had been elsewhere, it might not have been the same situation. ”
"I don't feel guilty. I'm just living as much as I can, just like everyone else. Both the NBA and the NBA players' union have made it clear that I can do something to fix this, but that's not on the radar. ”
It can be seen that Irving clearly knows that the solution to the problem is to get vaccinated, and he never seems to consider the "big picture" or the feelings of his teammates, until Harden leaves the Nets in discouragement, and Owen also expects the world to change for him alone.
The Nets' parting ways with Harden meant that just over a year after trading Harden, the Nets' Big Three fell apart. Durant, Harden and Irving have played only 16 games on the court, 10 in the regular season and 6 in the playoffs last year.
Durant, who recently returned to the court, said in his pre-match press conference that he felt better but declined to give a return timeline. Durant hopes to gradually increase his training volume in the coming weeks, and he doesn't want to make a comeback until he doesn't feel 100% recovered.
The press conference was Durant's first public interview since his injury, and when the media talked about Harden's trade request, Durant didn't think Harden needed to explain anything.
"James (Harden) doesn't need to explain anything to anyone." Durant said. "He himself made decisions about his career. He didn't owe anyone an explanation, and I wasn't looking for an explanation. I'm glad we did it, and now that the dust has settled we can move on and I'm sure he'll feel the same way. James didn't owe anyone an explanation. That's his life. ”
If we put ourselves in the shoes of Harden's situation, it seems that we can also understand Harden's contradictions and unhappiness.
Durant was reluctant to say in the interview whether he had tried to persuade Harden to stay, nor did he blame Irving for not getting vaccinated, though general manager Sean Max acknowledged that was a factor in Harden's dissatisfaction. Durant said Irving could easily be a scapegoat, adding that he hadn't asked enough questions to gauge its severity. Durant doesn't like to tangle, saying he doesn't think about what would have happened if the Big Three had played more than 16 games in good health. Even though it ended sooner than expected, he was proud of what they had done together.
Shortly after the deal took place, Durant spoke with Simmons. Simmons is indeed an all-rounder in addition to shooting issues, and head coach Steve Nash said he would be willing to help Simmons with the team's shooting coach Kyle Korver. Simmons' defense, rebounding, organizational skills and rhythm are all things the Nets desperately need.
Nash was also pleased with the addition of Seth Curry. Nash has been using Patty Mills intensively ever since Joe Harris was injured. Mills has made 177 three-pointers this season, more than the total number of three-pointers he made with the Spurs last season. Curry Jr. can shoot both fixed-point shots and dribble points, opening up space for his teammates, and he can share a lot of the burden for Mills at this point.
Winning the championship is clearly still the Goal of the Nets, and the combination of Simmons, Durant and Irving still seems to have the paper strength to compete for the championship. But with the disintegration of the "Big Three", the Nets will continue to struggle without Durant, and Irving will miss another two weeks. The Nets have lost in terms of the number of stars on the court, just a few people, you let Thomas decide the game, he doesn't have the ability to know? After the Kings lost, they lost to the Knicks, and after they lost to the Wizards, the next team lost, they all fell out of the playoffs.
Now the Nets have to figure out how to win without a star.