Kevin Durant is back, and the Nets couldn't have survived much longer without him.
The 33-year-old superstar hasn't played since Jan. 15, when Brooklyn was just 0.5 games back of the top spot in the Eastern Conference with a 27-15 record. Fast forward six weeks, and the Nets are buried in eighth place, just two games in front of the Hawks, who currently occupy the final playoff spot.
While Durant will almost certainly be seen as the hero Brooklyn needs to save them from the play-in tournament, he isn't looking at himself as a savior as he gets set for his long-awaited return.
"I know what I can do and how much I can help this team and what we're missing as a group," Durant said at Thursday's shootaround. "But I'm not trying to go out there and win the game by myself tonight or make it all about me."
It will be all about Durant on Thursday, whether he likes it or not. He was putting up MVP-caliber numbers before his MCL injury, averaging 29.3 points per game while shooting 52 percent from the floor. His team is 8-19 without him on the floor, and with James Harden gone, Durant's star power is needed more than ever, as the Nets will try to surge up the standings down the stretch and salvage a season that still carries title hopes.
"We are cutting it close," Durant said. "But that's the situation we are in. That's the circumstances we are in. We have to go out there and figure it out."
Brooklyn's schedule isn't an easy one, starting with the Heat at home for Durant's return, meaning no Kyrie Irving to help out. The Nets then play the Celtics and 76ers in the span of a week, and each game will be precious as they sit 4.5 games back of the sixth seed and above the play-in line.
"We want to win every game," Durant said. "But we just have to take it a day at a time. I know what the standings are. Everybody is telling us every day how far we have dropped and where we may end up, constantly telling us the situation we are in. We understand that, and we know that each day is important."
Durant was brought back cautiously, especially given his injury history in years past, particularly his Achilles injury suffered shortly after coming back from a calf strain during his final playoff run with the Warriors. But there is little time for caution now, and while Durant isn't sure if he will have a minutes restriction on Thursday, he will have to be the hero if Brooklyn wants to avoid the play-in nightmare.
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