"Man, I would not want to mess with KD & Kyrie" - Skip Bayless places his confidence in Brooklyn Nets ahead of the playoffs
The Brooklyn Nets caused problems for Tom Thibodeau on Wednesday night, making a remarkable comeback in the second-half against the New York Knicks. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving delivered late in the game, with Durant dropping 23 of his 32 points in the second half.
Despite a poor shooting night, Irving managed to drop 24 points, along with eight rebounds and seven assists. Durant recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists on a 50% shooting night. Patty Mills was another efficient contributor, scoring 12 points from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter, making all his attempts in the period.
Man, I would not want to mess with KD & Kyrie & the Brooklyn Nets in the playoffs.
The Brooklyn Nets’ performance seems to have caught the eye of Skip Bayless, as he took to Twitter to voice his concern for other teams:
“Man, I would not want to mess with KD & Kyrie & the Brooklyn Nets in the playoffs.”
While defense has been a looming concern for the Nets, the offense has been brilliant. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving have been playing exceptional basketball off-late, creating shots at will and even finding their teammates open when over-guarded.
Needed it.
Goodnight, #NetsWorld https://t.co/KIdCIjxUjj
The win against the Knicks was a much-needed confidence boost for the unit, with the regular-season soon to come to an end. In the post-game interview, Irving was pumped when he spoke about the game:
“It’s worth it man. Team effort, man. Total team effort. Man! Dang, I was waiting to let that out.”
The Brooklyn Nets roster has a lot of firepower, even with Ben Simmons unavailable. Seth Curry and Patty Mills are reliable scorers who can get going on any given night. Andre Drummond, who could score only four points against the Knicks, is otherwise a strong presence inside the paint – grabbing rebounds and swatting shots.
The team also has capable youngsters who can focus on helping the team defend well. Guarding the perimeter in today’s game is an ability that differentiates teams. Young legs that are active on defense could prove to be an asset during the playoffs.
Brooklyn Nets’ playoff picture and road ahead
The Brooklyn Nets (42-38) are eighth in the East, trailing the Cleveland Cavaliers (43-37) by just one game, while sharing a similar record with the Atlanta Hawks (42-38) in the eleventh position. The Nets will face the Cavaliers in their next game, with a chance to climb up to seventh in the standings. The Cavaliers have won only one of their three outings against the Nets this season.
Ohhhhhh myyyyyy 😤 https://t.co/0tuV0CKjwn
Climbing up to seventh will ensure home-court advantage in the Play-In tournament game, which is not a problem anymore – with Kyrie Irving being cleared to play at home.
More importantly, the last two games of the season could be used to build momentum for the upcoming challenge, as the Nets are slowly becoming a problem for opponents.