After the Brooklyn Nets lost 103-109 to the Boston Celtics, they trailed 3-0 on aggregate in the series and were on the verge of being swept out in the first round. Nets forward Kevin Durant admitted that "thinking too much" about the first-round series against the Celtics was a factor in his poor performance.
In the third game against the Celtics, Durant only scored 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, and Durant shot only 36.5% of the 56-of-19 shooting in the first three games of the series, facing the tenacious defense of the Celtics, Durant did not find any offensive rhythm at all, and Durant's mentality fluctuated in the series.
'To be honest, I just thought too much on the pitch, didn't make the right decision, and there's still a home game to play, a new opportunity, looking forward to the game.' Durant said. Durant averaged 30+ points per game for the regular season games in March and April, and KD was limited to 22 points per game in the first three games of the series with the Greenshirts. The Celtics have placed a lot of emphasis on durant's physical confrontation throughout the series, using their bodies to limit his speed.
Adu said, "The first two games I showed too strong, the opponents were wrapping me up, so that I could not play my own rhythm, the first two shots were too forced and passive, looking back at the game video I saw a lot of teammates in empty positions, and the feel is very good, so in today's game I want to make the game smooth and pass more." I want to find the right way to play, don't make mistakes, don't keep singles, don't be too strong. This series, I'm thinking about how to play. ”
The Celtics have three elite defenders, Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Stam, who can beat the league's best singles one-on-one breakup, and the team has its discipline to pack and rotate, Tatum said: "Smart, even Horford, is fighting for floorball, we need everyone to do that, we support each other, we communicate with each other, play side by side. ”
Durant said part of the reason the Celtics were so successful defending him was "they're bigger than us," and after the loss, KD reflected on it and admitted it wasn't the first time in his career that he felt like he was thinking too much on the court.
"In every team I've played for, I've been trying to find the best way to play," Durant said, "and when you have good teammates around you, you find ways to be the best version of yourself without getting in the way of your teammates." Sometimes, I think too much, and I need to empty my head and don't have any thoughts in my head. ”
Durant has made a total of 17 turnovers in his first three games, and as a team Nets, he has a total of 48 turnovers. A reporter hinted to Nash that maybe the team's All-Star players were too tired. Durant averaged 37.9 minutes per game in March, 40.6 minutes per game in April and 43 points per game in the first three games of the series. Irving averaged 41.4 points per game in April and 41.7 minutes per game in the series, and Irving was still spending Ramadan.
Nash agreed with reporters, "In the past, the Nets needed Durant to play 40 minutes a night for weeks in order to get into the playoffs," so it was really not easy, and I could feel how they felt. It was clear that the opponent was putting pressure on Durant, making physical contact with him, forcing him to make a mistake. We have to give up those bad decisions and simple passes. ”
Teammate Kyrie Irving understands Durant's current mentality, "I'm sure KD didn't play the level he wanted, I've had a similar situation, but that's a basketball game. Anything can happen over the course of the game. ”
Irving was also asked if the team was now 3-0 behind and could learn from the experience of reversing the Warriors from a 1-3 deficit with the Cavaliers. Owen said the situation is completely different from then, and I don't want to discuss that in front of my current teammates.