On April 26, Beijing time, in an NBA playoff game that ended today, the Nets lost to the Celtics 112-116 and were swept out, which was the first time in the playoffs that Durant and Irving were swept in their careers. And such an ending at the beginning of the season is actually unimaginable to most people, in fact, in terms of strength, the Nets did not really face the Celtics without any strength, but all kinds of strange things that happened throughout the season have made this Nets loose before entering the playoffs, and the tacit understanding is gone.
The main person who caused all this was actually Owen. Irving's failure to accept vaccinations this season has prevented him from playing a lot of games for the team, which has increased the burden on his teammates and destroyed the chemistry of the team, and on the other hand, it has also frustrated other players. It is worth mentioning that after the game, the American media counted the comparison of Kyrie Irving's appearances and missed games since joining the Nets, of which Irving has played a total of 103 games since joining the Nets, but the total number of absences is 123.
Of course, if Irving can lead the team forward in the crucial playoffs, then whether it is his long-term absence or strange temper, it will be diluted in the face of victory, but embarrassingly, the Nets have not only become the only team to be swept out of the playoffs this season, Irving's own performance is also very bad.
In the whole game, Irving started 45 minutes, shooting 6-of-13, 2-of-3 from three-point range, and 6-of-6 from the free throw line for 20 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. In the 4-game series with the Celtics, in addition to scoring 39 points in the first game, Irving averaged only 15.3 points per game in the last three games, shooting only 37.2% from the field, and only 2 of the 11 three-pointers combined, which can be said to be very stretched.
In this way, Irving's damage to the Nets is very large, the regular season stage can not play normally, the playoff stage is constantly pulling, so what is the use of the Nets to have such a player? Is it really worth it to renew him with a maximum salary? No one knows what the Nets management was thinking after being eliminated by the Celtics, but Irving has taken the lead in saying that he is willing to stay with the Nets and present himself as the Nets manager.
After the game, Irving talked about his career at the Nets, saying: "There is no other answer to where I am going, I will be here with the No. 7 (Kevin Durant), but I am here to build a great team. Irving said he plans to renew his contract with the Nets: "When I said I wanted to be here with Kevin, I thought it would require us to manage this team with Joe and Sean. ”
It seems that Irving really thinks of himself as the boss of the Nets, and even the decision-makers who can decide the operation of the team, which undoubtedly means that the Future Decisions of the Nets should still be listened to. Irving's attitude has also attracted a lot of fans to ridicule, have said that Irving has no self-awareness, he said so, let the Nets owner think? Does he really deserve to say such a thing? It seems that even after a fiasco in the playoffs, Irving still didn't realize what was wrong with him.
And after working with Irving for 3 seasons, Durant can be said to have achieved nothing, played 2 playoffs in 3 years, even the Eastern Conference Finals could not enter, the first time in his career was swept, this round of the series is to make Durant's wind evaluation show a cliff-like decline, the so-called death god descended, the key ball of the big heart, in front of the Celtics defense is vulnerable, and even in the final moments of the game, Durant shot a three-pointer against Smart, in exchange for the opponent's face full of mockery.
After such an embarrassing season, many people are speculating whether Durant regrets working with Irving, and in the post-game interview, speaking about the pressure caused by Kyrie Irving's long absence this season, Durant said: "Yes, yes. He's not around the team, he wants to be inside the team. Having conversations, missing games, and lacking time to play together. I couldn't have done more. That's out of my control. The most I could do was come and work, be myself, and make sure the situation inside the gym was right for everyone. ”
Durant said he knew he couldn't force Irving to get the COVID-19 vaccine, so his frustration was only a temporary post-game mood. At the same time, his words are actually equivalent to admitting that although he does not blame Owen for not vaccinating, it is true that Owen's various behaviors over the years, he cannot control and influence. In fact, this proves once again that when he chose to team up with Irving, Durant overestimated himself too much, because he may think that he is not James, James can't control Irving, but he can.
But the truth is that even James, who has an unparalleled leadership temperament, can't really let Irving play obediently, and Durant, who lacks domineering and leadership ability, why do he think he can suppress Irving, manage Irving well, and let Irving really not fool around and play well? In the end, a player like Owen wants to be the boss and will not obey anyone.