The Nets have won seven of their last eight games after getting by the lowly Pelicans on Friday night, and much of their success can be attributed to the otherworldly play of Kevin Durant.
Playing like the superstar he is, and the one Brooklyn needs while Kyrie Irving remains out and unvaccinated, Durant is averaging a league-high 25.8 points per game this season after dropping 28 points on Friday. Those 28 points actually ended a streak of three straight games where Durant dropped over 30.
Still, he eclipsed the 20-point mark, something he has done in each of the Nets' first 13 games, a feat not accomplished by any other player in franchise history. It's already the second time Durant has done it in a Brooklyn uniform.
Durant is already a four-time NBA scoring champion, and is on pace to win a fifth, which is exactly what the Nets needed with Irving out and James Harden getting off to a slow start this season. But now, Harden is starting to put it together on the offensive end, and with Durant playing at the level he is, the Nets are quickly back to looking like a legit title contender.
It will likely only get better for Brooklyn as Harden continues to get back to his star potential, as Durant is clearly already at his. He shot 11-for-17 on Friday after hitting 11 of 12 field goal attempts earlier in the week, and is shooting 64 percent from the field and 58 percent from downtown over his last four games.
Translation: opposing defenses are in for a nightmare when tasked with slowing down this current version of Durant.
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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