Nets superstar Kevin Durant heaps praise on Celtics following sweep
Nets superstar Kevin Durant thinks these Celtics are for real.
Apr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant (7) controls the ball against Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown (7) during the fourth quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. The Celtics defeated the Nets 116-112 to win the best of seven series 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
For the first time since they brought a professional football player out to The Hamptons as part of to their pitch for him to join their professional basketball team, the Celtics made things mighty uncomfortable for Kevin Durant.
With a player (or two) in his face throughout every second of his team's four-game sweep at the hands of the Celtics, Durant was straight-up suffocated by the Celtics. Even a 39-point effort in his club's Game 4 loss, which came with eight misses from three-point range for the 33-year-old star, wasn't enough to prolong Brooklyn's inevitable misery.
“Give credit to the Celtics, first off," Durant said in his postgame media availability. "I mean, they’re an incredible team. They got a chance to do some big things the rest of the playoffs. They played amazing.”
Durant finished the series with a 38.6 field goal percentage and 21 turnovers. That 38.6 field goal percentage is Durant's worst in any series in six years, and his third-worst among the 30 series he's competed in his NBA career, while this first-round showdown marked the first time in Durant's career he averaged more than five turnovers per game in a series.
The Celtics mixed up their attacks on Durant. He struggled to handle Jayson Tatum in a power-on-power, star-on-star one-on-one battles for the ages, and Grant Williams also played some downright stifling defense on Durant. Their efforts certainly went beyond just those two, both in terms of personnel and numbers, as the Celtics' smothering help defense was a consistent throughout this series, and it even extended beyond just Durant.
“There’s a lot of stuff that may factor into why we lose, but they were just a better team," Durant said of the Celtics. "They played that way. This is the best defense in the league, right? I mean, for the whole series, we shot over 50 percent, 40 [percent] from the three. But turnovers, offensive rebounds, straight-line drives really killed us.
"Standing in front of their guys, they had bigger guys that we’d look up and Seth Curry or [Goran] Dragic is boxing out a seven footer. They’re playing hard, but they’re just smaller, you know? A lot of bigs out on the perimeter on the switch, guarding a guard. So there’s a lot of things that happened throughout the series that just didn’t work out in our favor.”
It was a four-game beatdown that's served as a reminder that the Nets, who went an entire stretch run (and series) without Ben Simmons available, may need to do more to keep up with an East that could be experiencing a changing of the guard.
“I see what’s going on around the league," Durant said. "The league is growing fast. There’s so many great players. We gotta be right there with the pack if we want to be a contending team. So, we got a lot of work to do.”
The Boston Celtics took on the Brooklyn Nets in Game 4 of their first-round 2022 NBA playoff series on Monday night at Barclays Center. Check out photos from the game below.
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesKevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets and Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics square off during the first quarter of Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesRobert Williams III #44 of the Boston Celtics dunks in the third quarter as Kyrie Irving #11 of the Brooklyn Nets defends during Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) controls the ball against Brooklyn Nets guard Patty Mills (8) during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) controls the ball against Brooklyn Nets guard Seth Curry (30) and forward Nic Claxton (33) during the first quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) is fouled as he drives to the basket by Brooklyn Nets center Andre Drummond (0) in front of Nets forward Bruce Brown (1) during the first quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesJayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics reacts after he is called for a foul in the first quarter against the Brooklyn Nets in Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Blake Griffin (2) controls the ball against Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams (12) during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant (7) drives to the basket against Boston Celtics center Al Horford (42) and center Daniel Theis (27) during the first quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Seth Curry (30) drives to the basket against Boston Celtics guard Derrick White (9) during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving (11) controls the ball against Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard (11) during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesKevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets celebrates his three point shot in the first quarter against the Boston Celtics during Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets – Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesKevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets heads down court in the first quarter against the Boston Celtics in Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesKevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets passes the ball as he is pressured by Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics in the second quarter during Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NBA: Boston Celtics at Brooklyn Nets
Brad Penner-USA TODAY SportsApr 25, 2022; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Boston Celtics forward Grant Williams (12) reacts after hitting a three point shot against the Brooklyn Nets during the second quarter of game four of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics v Brooklyn Nets - Game Four
Elsa/Getty ImagesJaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics dunks as Nic Claxton #33 of the Brooklyn Nets defends in the first half during Game Four of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at Barclays Center on April 25, 2022 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. He has been covering the Bruins since 2010, and has been a member of the Boston chapter of the PHWA since 2013. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter: @_TyAnderson.
