“You don’t think you could lose a game like this.” This is how Kevin Durant defines the feeling that the Nets had before facing some Clippers who arrived without Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Nicolas Batum, Ivica Zubac, Luke Kennard and Marcus Morris … Yes, the Angelenos were more than depleted and in Brooklyn perhaps they felt the crash as a mere formality. Not only was it not like that, but they lost.
Durant had 28 points, James Harden had a triple-double of 34 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists, and Patty Mills hit five triples for a total of 17 points. Individually they complied, but collectively they fell apart when they seemed to have the night more on track. And we say that because with six minutes to play they won by up to 13 points (105-92). It was not enough.
The guys from Tyronn Lue – last night led by Brian Shaw – showed mental strength to get into the fight for the victory with a 13-2 partial and later hit the final blow with unusual players in such struggles as Justise Winslow (11 points from the bench) or Terance Mann (19 points). It was a collective effort, one in which Eric Bledsoe stood out with 27 points, but in which everyone did their bit.
«It just shows our value. It shows what we’ve been through over the last year and a half in terms of our move on to the next man mentality. It shows what we are capable of “, says a more than satisfied Mann.
Nash, hurt by the attitude
That’s how it is. If Kevin Durant assured that they entered the game thinking it was impossible to lose, Steve Nash emphasized such a feeling after seeing how his team let themselves go back by conceding up to 40 points in the fourth quarter. It was a tough ending, but the head coach he does not complain, since he understands that they deserved to lose after what was shown on the floor. “We came to this game with a bad attitude that was noticeable from the beginning. We thought we entered with a ‘W’ (victory) in our locker, ”he laments.
(Photograph by Dustin Satloff / Getty Images)
