Kevin Durant versus Jayson Tatum is marquee matchup in Nets' first-round series with Celtics

There is no question the marquee matchup in the Nets’ first-round playoff series against the Celtics is at small forward between Kevin Durant, the "OG" superstar who is a two-time NBA champ, and budding star Jayson Tatum, whose 50 points in a play-in win over the Wizards on Tuesday secured the No. 7 seed for the Celtics.

"Tatum has shown in the last few weeks that he’s capable of getting 50, 60 points, so the task is there for us to defend him as a team," Nets coach Steve Nash said. "He’s going to be a handful, and we’re going to have to be locked in to try and slow him down."

The Nets scored a 3-0 season sweep of the Celtics, but Tatum averaged 29.7 points against them, including 44.0% shooting from three-point range. During the regular season, he topped the 40-point mark five times, including games of 60, 53 and 50. Nash admitted much of the defensive responsibility falls to Durant.

Durant laughed it off when a Boston reporter asked how it might feel to go against a young guy like Tatum, who idolized KD and modeled his game after him. "JT is one of those guys that brings his own version of scoring and defending and passing and just being an overall basketball player," Durant said. "He is unique, and we all appreciate and respect it. I know how tough it’s going to be out there, and I’m looking forward to that challenge."

After sitting out last season to recover from Achilles surgery, Durant is excited to return to the playoffs for the first time in two years after joining the Nets. "We’re glad we got this far as a group and we’re glad we continue to trend in the right direction," Durant said. "Being able to play the game and do life with guys that I would call brothers in this league, it’s pretty fun. It’s the cherry on top."

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.