Kyrie Irving mouth open white uniform no opponent
“Bigger impact than anything you’ll see at the trade deadline.”
That’s how one opposing scout summed up their thoughts on Kyrie Irving after watching his debut with the Nets.
In his first NBA game in nearly six months, Irving had 22 points in 32 minutes in a win over Indiana. As you’d expect, he looked a bit out of sync early on. But he seemed to get comfortable quickly, scoring 14 of his 22 points in the final 15 minutes of the game to help the Nets erase a 19-point deficit.
In one 19-second span in the fourth, Irving had a pull-up jumper, a steal and another pull-up jumper. The sequence gave the Nets a five-point edge they wouldn’t relinquish in a road win over Indiana.
“That’s how you play when you’re just elite at everything on the basketball court,” Kevin Durant said of Irving, who missed the first 35 games of the Nets’ season due to a team decision on his COVID-19 vaccination status.
Irving’s return makes…