NBA Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas Criticises Kevin Durant’s Game: Calls It Dominance Deprived!
Even though Kevin Durant has been averaging over 30 points per game this season, the Brooklyn Nets haven’t had much success so far. The All-Star forward isn’t the usual dominant player this year, NBA icon Isiah Thomas said.
One of the top scorers in the NBA right now is Kevin Durant. With his talent, height, and length, he can score from any spot on the court and against any opponent. This season, he has been averaging more than 30 points. But despite his exceptional scoring abilities, the Nets have struggled and have dropped three of their first four games.
Isiah Thomas Calls Out Kevin Durant’s Game
It may be a stretch, but a recent criticism of Durant by Isiah Thomas, NBA Hall of Famer claimed that it was “not there anymore.” However, when a team is struggling, the top player on the team will inevitably face criticism.
"He used to get 30 and that meant he dominated the game. Now his 30 is just 30." @IsiahThomas speaks on the impact of Kevin Durant's plus-minus this season#CenterCourt | @madebygoogle pic.twitter.com/n0QSz9gSum
— NBA TV (@NBATV) October 27, 2022
“The thing that I’m noticing right away with Durant is that he used to get 30, and that meant he dominated the game. Now his 30 is just 30,” Thomas said.
“Normally, when he got 30, it was like, the game is over, and his team won. Now it’s a 30 where you’re still asking, ‘What happened?'”
“The dominance in terms of, ‘I get 30, we win.’ It’s not there anymore.”
Thomas is not entirely off-base. The Nets leaned on Durant last season while he was healthy, and at times, he carried the team’s offence. The Nets 2022–23 team, nevertheless, is different from the one from the previous year, and some of the supplementary scoring alternatives are absent. It is a result of both player injuries and underperformance on their part.
extra hoops coming up pic.twitter.com/4mghfDTOJL
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) October 28, 2022
Of course, there is a ton of statistical noise in this situation, especially with a sample size of four games. Durant spends a lot of time playing next to Ben Simmons and is averaging 32.2 points per game while shooting an effective 52.4 per cent from the field (who has glaring problems of his own right now). The former MVP Durant must also adjust to starting alongside Royce O’Neale, a new teammate, and Kyrie Irving, a veteran who was hardly available last year.
It’s true that there are currently many good grounds to criticise both Durant and the entire Nets team. But chances are that Durant will return to having a significant impact on winning basketball once he feels at ease with his new teammates.
It’s fairly obvious there’s still something going on with Ben Simmons physically.
I mean look at this. pic.twitter.com/80snJiQsFo
— Erik Slater (@erikslater_) October 28, 2022
The 12-time All-Star can continue to put up his typical statistics, but he needs reliable players who can make significant contributions. Nobody is certain, though, that the lineup that the Nets front management has assembled around him is adequate.
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