Kevin Durant will ceaselessly be tied to the Golden State Warriors after successful two championships with them, however on Wednesday, he and his Brooklyn Nets laid a historic beating on his former workforce. Though issues calmed down considerably within the second half, the Nets scored an unimaginable 91 factors within the first two quarters in opposition to the Warriors in what is going to go down as one of many best offensive halves of basketball in NBA historical past.
The 91 factors Brooklyn scored are the third most any workforce has scored in a primary half in league historical past. The report, in response to ESPN Stats & Info, is 107, held by the 1990 Phoenix Suns, whereas the 2018 Warriors, who Durant as performed for, dropped 92 on the Bulls. Additionally, the 40-point halftime lead the Nets constructed over the Warriors represents the largest halftime deficit a defending NBA champion has ever confronted, additionally in response to ESPN Stats & Info. Brooklyn in the end received the sport, 143-113.
It was a remarkably balanced efficiency general. No Net completed the sport with greater than 23 factors, however 9 Brooklyn gamers reached double figures and all 12 gamers they used scored not less than 5 factors. All-Star guard Kyrie Irving didn’t even play in opposition to Golden State, and the Nets nonetheless walloped the admittedly depleted Warriors.
It is simply the most recent in a protracted collection of victories for Brooklyn. The Nets have now received seven video games in a row and 10 or their final 11. After beginning the season slowly and mired in controversy, the Nets have paired one of many league’s greatest offenses with a surprisingly stout protection to climb up the Eastern Conference standings. They entered Wednesday’s motion simply three video games out of first place, and in the event that they preserve scoring like this, it will not be lengthy till they’ve handed the Bucks and Celtics, the 2 groups that knocked them out of the playoffs the final two seasons.
The Warriors, in the meantime, have now misplaced six of their previous eight, and with Stephen Curry sidelined, their defensive woes are rising an increasing number of pronounced. The Golden State protection that ranked second within the NBA final season has fallen to twenty first this time round, and whereas Curry might not have performed in opposition to the Nets, defensive ace Draymond Green did. At 15-17, they’re now out of the highest 10 within the Western Conference. With Golden State successful the title final yr and the Nets competing for it whereas Golden State languished within the lottery the yr prior, It appears as if Durant and the Warriors are incapable of succeeding on the identical time. Right now, the pendulum is swinging towards the Nets.
