Kevin Durant sees preseason as chance to build Nets' identity
Nets forward Kevin Durant looks on against the Miami Heat during the first half of an NBA preseason basketball game at Barclays Center on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
How important is it for the Nets to get their first preseason win Wednesday night when they play Eastern Conference powerhouse Bucks in Milwaukee?
Not very, according to Nets star Kevin Durant.
Durant doesn’t put a lot of stock in the Nets’ record in the preseason or the mood of the team in training camp; It’s the regular season he is concerned about.
“It’s like any other preseason, any other training camp,” Durant said after the team’s practice Tuesday. “…. To get back in the swing of things is cool. Vibes have been straight. But who knows what the vibes will be if we hit a skid or we’re not playing well or someone gets injured.
“I think that’s what makes a team — how we stick through those times. It’s easy to be cool and everything is positive right now, but we’ll see as the season goes on.”
Suffice it to say, the vibes weren’t always good last season. In the face of adversity — injuries, trade demands and Kyrie Irving’s vaccination drama — the Nets struggled. They lost 11 straight in January and were 8-19 when Durant didn’t play.
There also have been some indication that the Nets, who were picked by many to win it all last season, weren’t always going 100% last year. At least that’s the feeling one gets from listening to Blake Griffin, who played for the Nets last year but is now with the Boston Celtics.
“I think the intensity and maturity level of this group is off the charts,” said Griffin of his new team. “Every day when we get to work it’s intense. It’s not that we’re going forever but these guys are locked in and no one has to tell us to be locked in. It’s refreshing.”
A couple months after the Nets were swept out of the first round of the playoffs by the Celtics, Durant asked to be traded. He finally agreed to return to the Nets, but the fact remains that he saw something that made him want to go elsewhere.
Durant said he sees the preseason as a chance to build an identity.
“It’s just assessment, trying to figure out who you are as a group,” he said. “You know, we want to win every possession and we don’t want to look bad. But, there’s going to come a time when we are not playing great basketball for a spurt in the preseason. There’s going to be times we played great basketball. We’re trying to play all together. It’s still early in the year.
“We want to be in great shape as the season goes on but we want to be our best version as the season starts progressing. We want to take our time now and keep working but have some sense of urgency as well. So it’s a balance.”
Notes & quotes: Joe Harris is still suffering from what the team is calling a sore foot and will miss his second straight preseason game in Milwaukee Wednesday night, Nash said . . . Seth Curry, who is recovering from offseason ankle surgery, has made progress, according to Nash, but he won’t play in either of the team’s final two preseason games. The team is still hopeful that he will be ready for the season opener against the Pelicans Oct. 19 at Barclays Center.
Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.
