Preview: Suns Face Nets in Durant's Return to Brooklyn

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns (27-20) are set to face the Brooklyn Nets (19-27) tonight in Brooklyn, which will officially mark Kevin Durant's return to the city following his move to Phoenix nearly a year ago.

The Suns are looking to improve to 3-2 on this elongated road trip while the Nets are looking to reposition themselves as a play-in team in the East.

Bol Bol and Grayson Allen come into the game listed as questionable while Brooklyn's Ben Simmons is questionable and Dorian Finney-Smith is out.

Three headlines going into tonight:

Durant's Return

Kevin Durant is playing his first game in Barclays Center as a member of the Suns since being traded to Phoenix on Feb. 9 of last year.

Durant's time in Brooklyn was marred by injuries, multiple controversies surrounding team personnel, and perceived mismanagement of the team. He only played 129 games across three seasons in Brooklyn and it will remain to be seen what reception he'll receive until around tip off time.

Durant gave his two cents on his expectation of how the Nets home crowd will receive him in a recent interview:

“It just depends on how the people wake up that morning. A lot of people don’t know what to say or how to feel about me. It’s up in the air what may happen. I’m excited people will come watch the game and support the game.”

Expect Durant to have a huge game tonight in his return to Brooklyn following years of dysfunction as a member of that franchise.

Nets: On a Skid

Brooklyn has been one of the worst teams in the NBA since their victory against the Suns on Dec. 13.

The win against the Suns lifted Brooklyn to 13-10. Since, the Nets have gone 6-17 in the month and a half stretch since.

Inconsistencies on both sides of the ball have catalyzed the dramatic drop off.

The Nets' overachieving offense has sputtered for the most part, save for a handful of explosions, such as the 147-point performance against the Utah Jazz on Monday.

The most disappointing aspect of the Nets' season has been the squad's defense.

The Nets went into the season with a perceived chance to sneak into the playoffs behind a stout defense which features two former defensive player of the year contenders in Mikal Bridges and Nic Claxton, along with several other stout defenders.

The Suns must not take this matchup lightly, as Brooklyn will be extra motivated to win this game themselves - and Bridges particularly has been playing some great basketball of late.

Player to Watch: Ben Simmons

The former number one overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft has become something of an afterthought over the last couple of seasons.

The talented point forward participated in his first game since Nov. 6 on Monday against the Jazz- a game where he scored 10 points, grabbed 8 boards, dished out 11 assists, while also impacting the game on the defensive side of the ball in the Nets huge win.

Simmons still has clear limitations that likely won't allow him to be the player he once was, but the LSU product can and potentially will be a player who can impact games in major ways.

Day'Ron Sharpe is an under-the-radar player to watch if Simmons is unable to go.

The game is set to tip off shortly after 6:30 PM Arizona time tonight and will be a national broadcast on ABC.