NBA Playoffs – Boston Celtics chain Nets star Kevin Durant again: The “Durant Rules”

Kevin Durant played two weak games in a row against the Boston Celtics. How did that happen and what makes the Boston Celtics defense so good against the Nets star?

Kevin Durant has now played almost 1,100 games in the regular season and the playoffs in his illustrious career, the 33-year-old was on the court for more than 40,000 minutes, but something like the loss in game 2 at the Boston Celtics (107:114 ) had never happened to the Forward. In the second half, perhaps the most talented scorer in NBA history failed to score a single goal – and that in ten attempts.

It’s arguable that everyone has a night like this, but wasn’t Durant that creepy scoring machine that no top Eastern Conference team wanted to see in the first round of the playoffs? Wasn’t it Durant who almost single-handedly knocked out the eventual champion from Milwaukee last year and gave Brooklyn, when healthy, sometimes outrageous victories?

Against Boston, however, KD suddenly seems human, even this 2.08-meter guy can be pushed so hard that it throws him out of his rhythm. When was the last time you had this feeling? Probably still in Thunder times, when Durant had even more gaps in his game. Since then, the 33-year-old has been an offensive cheat code, blessed with one of the NBA’s best jump shots that was almost impossible to block. In two games against Boston this happened four times (Al Horford, Jaylen Brown and 2x Jayson Tatum).

Kevin Durant hits just 32 percent from the field

The “Easy Money Sniper” has now taken 41 throws in the series and only hit 13 of them, which is not even 32 percent. There are also 12 turnovers and a trip to the free-throw line with two failed attempts in a row. It’s things we’re not used to from KD, even if the forward still managed to score 27 points thanks to 18 converted free throws in Game 2.

Durant hasn’t had to work that hard for his points in a long time and it seemed to frustrate the Nets star at times, although he denied it after the game. “They do a good job of keeping me from scoring,” admitted KD candidly. “Two or three players are always close to me. We have to find other ways now.”

Last year, in the first round series against Boston, Durant completely dismantled his opponent with 32.6 points and an absurd true shooting of almost 70 percent. But now the parameters have changed. With James Harden, the Nets are missing another offensive weapon, and the Celtics have gained flexibility with Al Horford and Jaylen Brown (missed injured last year).

Die “Durant Rules” der Boston Celtics

And then there’s another factor that shouldn’t be underestimated: Celtics coach Ime Udoka. The Celtics rookie head coach was an assistant to Steve Nash in Brooklyn last year and was primarily responsible for defense there, so the 44-year-old knows the tendencies of the star players inside out. “Sure, he knows a lot about us. He probably gave his team a lot of tips to contain us,” said Kyrie Irving, who, after his 39 points in Game 1, also disappointed this time and scored only 10 points.

However, the main focus of the Celtics defense is clearly on Durant, which is more than evident after the two games. Boston managed to make KD as uncomfortable as possible. Almost no possession goes by without Durant being doubled, or at least showing the double, given the Superstar even a chance to get into scoring position.

This usually happens as soon as the ball is caught, but the Celtics also have an excellent option in Tatum in a one-on-one. Horford is also always in the orbit of the two-time finals MVP, the center is able to at least defend properly at the age of 34 after switches. In other situations, Marcus Smart stands in the passing lanes or aggressively grabs the ball when Durant pulls into the zone.

“That’s the way it is in the playoffs,” Durant said of his special treatment. “I’m not dealing with just one opponent and that’s why I have to be patient (…) They basically play a zone defense against me. We have to stay calm and just do our thing.”

Kevin Durant: Inside the Celtics Jail

That’s one way of looking at things, the other is that Durant hasn’t faced such a good defensive team since joining the Warriors in 2016. The Celtics have a good opponent for KD in Tatum, plus there are many intelligent Help Defenders and also various players who are not completely lost after a switch against Durant.

Durant was only successful in game 2 if he was able to attack Daniel Theis from the Pick’n’Roll, otherwise KD mostly only had the well-defended jump shot. Even that is often not enough against Durant, but the 33-year-old must have started thinking about the fact that his throw has actually been blocked several times.

“KD is now in the Boston Celtics jail,” tweeted former teammate Kendrick Perkins, among others. “They play very physically with KD and screwed him again.” This is alarming for the Nets, as the squad is significantly thinner than last year. The Harden mentioned, the still injured Joe Harris – all options that Nash lacks, even if Seth Curry (16, 6/11 FG) and Goran Dragic (18, 8/14) acted properly.