The Nets hit seventh in the East
The combination of Irving and Durant managed to pull the Nets back off the edge of the cliff. After a three-game winning streak, they have come to seventh place in the East. However, the Cavaliers, the eighth in the East, have the same record as them, so in the final game of the regular season, the Nets can only win and cannot lose. In the final game of the regular season, the Nets have a good opponent, that is, the Indiana Pacers, a team that completely broke the rebuild in the middle of the season and currently suffered nine consecutive losses, ranking third from the bottom in the East.
Kevin Durant is still able to deliver a brilliant personal performance every night, and after Irving's return, the defensive pressure he faces on the court has been reduced a lot. In the past three games, the Nets have won by double digits and won easier, and in this game, they have no reason not to continue this momentum.
Owen Durant was all on his own
At the beginning of the first quarter, the Nets showed their strength, Irving felt hot, 10 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists on 5-of-6 shooting, Brown also had 8 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists, Johnson 6 points and 5 rebounds, Durant only 2 points on 0-of-5 shooting, but gave 6 assists, the Nets bombed 41 points in a single quarter, which was simply unstoppable, and the Pacers scored 29 points. After returning from the second quarter, Durant was aggressive, scoring 6 free throws in a single quarter, 8 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists, and Chuang Shen had 12 points and 5 rebounds on 5-of-5 shooting.
The Nets continued their excellent form in the first quarter, scoring another 35 points in a single quarter, but the Pacers also scored 31 points, so at the end of the half, the Nets were only 16 points ahead of the Pacers at 76-60. In the second half, Durant had 6 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists, 15 assists in the third quarter, Irving was 10 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist, Brown 7 points, 2 rebounds and 2 blocks, but the Nets only scored 27 points in this quarter, the Pacers blossomed more, and bombed 34 points in a single quarter, successfully narrowing the point difference to 9 points, retaining suspense.
After returning from the last quarter, Irving once again dominated the game, shooting 5 of 5, shooting 2 of 2 from three-point range, and taking 13 points, 3 rebounds and 1 steal in a single quarter, and his offensive talent was vividly displayed. Durant finished with three more rebounds and a triple-double, and the Nets maintained a 10-point lead or so to beat the Indiana Pacers 134-126 to secure a seventh place in the East.
The Eastern Conference playoffs have been determined
On the first game day of the NBA regular season, the four teams in the Eastern Conference playoffs played at the same time, and all four teams won the game, that is, the rankings did not change, the Nets were seventh, the Cavaliers were eighth, the Hawks were ninth, and the Hornets were tenth. In the next playoffs, the Nets and Cavaliers battle for seventh place in the East, and the losing team fights against the winners of the Hawks and Hornets to compete for the eighth place in the East. The Nets, which have home-court advantage, have a high probability of taking seventh place in the East, and at that time, they will challenge the second-place team in the East.
Irving became the game's leading scorer, with high efficiency in 15 of 20 shooting, bombing down 35 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists, Durant became a commander, with a triple-double of 20 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists, and Brown also had 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks, attacking and defending well. Particularly commendable is Zhuang Shen, who scored 20 points, 13 rebounds and 2 blocks on 9-of-9 shooting, and only played 20 minutes. The Pacers scored in double figures for seven, Brisett had a team-high 28 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists, Hield had 21 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists, and Halliburton had 17 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists.