Steve Nash knew what was on the line when the Nets took the court in game five.
With Kyrie Irving out due to a sprained ankle and James Harden pushing his way through a hamstring injury that had originally led to him being listed as out the day before the game, Brooklyn's first-year head coach knew if the Nets were going to grab a 3-2 series lead, it would be on the shoulders of Kevin Durant.
Nash admittedly rode Durant more than he would have liked, but Durant gave him everything he could have hoped for and more, logging a 49-point triple double in the Nets' 114-108 win Tuesday night.
"Historic, historic performance," Nash said. "He played the entire game, he barely missed, he got to the line…It's ridiculous what he's able to do. We know he's capable of nights like this, but to do it tonight…we're down bodies, we're wounded...that's what makes him one of the all-time greats"
Durant, who is playing in his first full season since suffering a serious Achilles injury with Golden State, also was lost for nearly two months this season with a hamstring strain, but he told Nash he was ready to shoulder the load for the shorthanded Nets, and was on the court for every second of the crucial game five.
"It's not ideal," Nash said. "But if we didn't play him 48, we probably don't win tonight. It's a tough decision. It's an easy decision that's very tough to make. I hate to put him in that position, but we talked through the game with him, we tried to find different times to get timeouts and give him a spell, but we've just had so much thrown at us and so many injuries, so many changes throughout the year. We're taking a risk here…hopefully we can settle things down and not have to play him the whole game the next night, but that's a part of what the playoffs is about, is finding a way to make things happen when things don't look good."
Durant showed no signs of slowing down through the extended playing time, dropping 20 points in the fourth quarter while shooting 6-for-9 from the field and 3-for-5 from downtown, including a dagger triple in the final minute to give the Nets a four-point lead. It wasn't how Nash would have liked to deploy his star, but in the most important game of the season, he needed to lean on his best player, and he more than delivered.
"Kevin's game was just unbelievable," Harden said. "He was unfazed the entire game…once Kevin gets comfortable and he's in the zone, it's hard to stop him. And we just fed off that."
How his 48-minute marathon will affect his play the rest of the series, if at all, will be a discussion during game six. But after game five, it was clear the Nets needed every bit of Durant to avoid the brink of elimination, and instead are on the brink of advancing to the conference finals.
"This is a performance, a signature performance for Kevin," Nash said. "It was beautiful to watch."
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
