The Nets continue their cruising rhythm after adding a comfortable victory in Oklahoma City. Nash’s side, which have won eight of their last nine games, defeated the Thunder 96-120 to become the first team from the East to reach 10 wins, ending the surprising streak of Daigneault’s, who had won their last four games in a row.
This time, however, there was little they could do to contain a Kevin Durant who, as usual, was booed about his past at OKC and his departure in 2016. This did not distract the forward, who once again showed off his scoring talent to go up to 33 points with a 52.9% accuracy in the shot and without an apparent excessive effort. The former Warriors, who also captured 8 rebounds and distributed 4 assists, spoke in his subsequent statements about his time in the franchise with James Harden, with whom he has reunited in Brooklyn in a totally different phase of their respective careers.
“It’s crazy how things evolve,” he said. Obviously you never know what the future holds, but this was unthinkable when James was traded. Coming back here together on the same team is nice. We help build this, and it’s exciting to come years later and see what it has become. “
Harden finished the game with a double-double 16 points and 13 assists, although the one who really backed Durant on the scoring side was Patty Mills. The Australian, with 29 points, had one of the best games of his career, and he did it thanks to a sensational 9/12 in triples that allowed him to break his record in shots of three scored in a single match.
At home, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort stood out with 23 and 20 goals respectively, but it was not even enough to stay in the game until the end. The Nets experienced a very calm second half, in which they measured their income well and prevented the Thunder from getting close on the scoreboard. “They are a very good team at competing and finding response, and we just couldn’t contain them,” Daigneault acknowledged.
(Cover photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)
