A Brooklyn Nets season that began with championship-or-bust expectations ended with a thud on Monday night at the Barclays Center, where the Boston Celtics completed a 4-0 first-round sweep to send the Nets into an uncertain offseason.
Ben Simmons was ruled out for the game on Sunday, and wasn’t even present on the Nets’ bench to cheer on his teammates. With the Nets needing huge games from its two superstars, only one delivered in the most important game of the year.
Kevin Durant went quiet in Game 3, but took a much more aggressive approach in Game 4 – yet still was thrown off by the Celtics’ smothering defense. Durant shot just 13-of-31 from the field, including 3-of-11 from long range, and finished with a game-high 39 points.
Kyrie Irving, who stole the show in Game 1 with a fantastic performance, had a third consecutive sub-par game, taking just 13 shots and finishing with 20 points.
Durant misses this clutch free throw
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 26, 2022
The game went down to the wire, but a transition layup by the Celtics off a Durant free-throw miss increased Boston’s advantage to four points and all but sealed the game.
Here’s what fans and analysts had to say after Game 4.