Irving had just come off a dud in Boston, a 19- point performance in a loss to the same team he once played for, in front of the same fans he told he wanted to play with forever, only to leave them…
Kevin Durant saw the look in Kyrie Irving’s eyes. Irving had just come off a dud in Boston, a 19-point performance in a loss to the same team he once played for, in front of the same fans he told he wanted to play with forever, only to leave them for Brooklyn after two seasons. Great players, however, rarely have two off games in a row. Irving reminded the world on Tuesday in Charlotte: He is one of the all-time greats – even if the NBA left him off its Top 75 list. “Everything he does is pure,” Durant said after giving Irving a round of applause postgame. “He led us all night. He hit big shots when we needed to, and it was just incredible – an incredible performance.” This is what happens when Irving, fresh off a subjectively average game in the Nets’ loss in Boston – a game he conceded got the best of him emotionally – plays like the star he’s proven to be. The Nets’ superstar guard scored 50 points on just 15-of-19 shooting from the field in a 132-121 win in Charlotte. He became just the third player in NBA history to score 50 points on fewer than 20 field goal attempts and just the fifth player in league history to score 50 points on 75% shooting or better from the field. “Obviously I didn’t play my best game in Boston,” Irving said after the game. “Tonight, we just wanted to have a fresh start, and I know that me coming out (and) playing aggressive, it sparks an energy in our team, and it makes everyone else’s job a lot easier, and it felt good tonight, too, just to do it in the flow of the game. “It wasn’t really forced.
