“Why is the face not the guy who refused to get vaccinated?… Why is the face not the guy with the beard?” - Zach Lowe questions why Kevin Durant is being blamed for the failure of the Brooklyn Nets
Brooklyn Nets shortcomings over the last three seasons have been primarily put on the shoulders of Kevin Durant. The superstar signed for the franchise along with Kyrie Irving. However, the Nets have zero conference finals appearances to show for, let alone NBA championships.
On ESPN's morning show Get Up, NBA analyst Zach Lowe shared his thoughts on the situation. He believes that more blame must be put on Irving and James Harden than Kevin Durant for the Nets' shortcomings.
Lowe believes that Durant is being unfairly criticized despite being the most consistent player amongst the three.
"Why is the face not the guy who refused to get vaccinated, who took hiatuses from the team who played 29 games last year? Why is the face not the guy with the beard who, because of the first guy decided, you know what, I'm gonna stop trying until you guys trade me out of here.
"Why is the face, why is the black mark, why is all the blame going to the only one of the three stars who actually, and I know this is a novel concept, played and played hard every single game," Lowe said.
After acquiring Irving and KD, the Nets also traded James Harden from the Houston Rockets.
With the newest Big Three assembled in Brooklyn, expectations were championship. But all they managed was a second-round loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, albeit with Irving injured and Harden hampered by a hamstring issue.
Kevin Durant's three seasons with the Brooklyn Nets
Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets have endured a tumultuous three seasons together with just one series win in the postseason to show for. KD was recovering from an achilles injury in the first season as he did not play a single game.
Kevin Durant's 48 points are now the most in a Game 7 in playoff history https://t.co/tPnrrtUn1i
Normal service seemed to have resumed for Durant in the second season. He finished the regular season averaging 26.9 points and 7.1 rebounds. He shot better than 53% from the field and 45% from the perimeter. However, it was in the postseason that the Slim Reaper truly reminded the rest of the NBA of his greatness.
Kevin Durant averaged 34.3 points and 9.3 rebounds while shooting the ball better than 51% from the field and a shade over 40% from beyond the arc. He had four games with 38 or more points as the Nets gentlemen swept the Boston Celtics in the first round.
In the subsequent series against the Milwaukee Bucks, KD averaged over 35 points and 10 boards. Had he worn a small shoe, the Bucks would have gone home in that round and the Nets could have potentially won the title.
With 36 pts Friday, Kevin Durant bumped up his season scoring average to 30.0555 PPG
Assuming he plays in the Nets regular season finale, Durant would need 27 pts to clinch 30 PPG. He would be the first player in Nets history to average 30 PPG https://t.co/pZbnXVjNa8
This season, on the other hand, was a calamity in the playoffs. Kevin Durant had arguably the worst showing of his career in the postseason as they were swept by the Boston Celtics in the first-round.