Kevin Durant defers to ex-Duke basketball guard for buzzer-beater
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The Brooklyn Nets (18-12) are on fire, to the tune of a league-best 9-1 mark across their last 10 games. And following Friday night's 119-116 road win over the Toronto Raptors, decided by a buzzer-beating three from 2010-11 Duke basketball one-and-done Kyrie Irving, they have risen to No. 4 in the Eastern Conference standings.
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Speaking of Irving's stepback 3-point splash from the top of the key, it sounds like that's what fellow Brooklyn star Kevin Durant envisioned during the timeout with 8.0 seconds to play. Durant told the press afterward that he recommended to Nets head coach Jacque Vaughn for Irving to get the ball.
"He was already cooking, so I didn't want to get in his way," the 2014 NBA Most Valuable Player and two-time NBA Finals MVP said. "I felt like he could get whatever he wanted there. I also felt like they weren't going to run and double him, either. They let him play one-on-one, and it was a special, special shot."
Kyrie Irving, who famously hit a clutch three in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals to propel the Cleveland Cavaliers to their only Larry O'Brien Trophy, pointed out that he's far from automatic in such circumstances.
"I'm not really comfortable," the seven-time All-Star said about last-second shots. "I just want to be great in those situations. I've failed more than I've succeeded."
According to ESPN's Nick Friedell, the shot to sink the Raptors was the first game-winning buzzer-beater of Irving's 12-year pro career.
The 30-year-old finished the game with 32 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter alone, in addition to five assists and three rebounds in his 35 minutes on the floor. He shot 13-for-22 from the floor, 3-for-9 beyond the arc, and 3-for-3 from the charity stripe.
After eclipsing the 30-point mark in three of his past four outings, Kyrie Irving is averaging 25.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game this season.
Brooklyn's other Duke basketball product, shooting guard Seth Curry, played only seven minutes off the bench on Friday night and did not score. Meanwhile, Toronto's lone NBA Blue Devil, shooting guard Gary Trent Jr., was out of action due to his left quad soreness.
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