Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant has had to face a lot of challenges in order to get to where he is in his career as a player. Whether it be fighting through injuries, dealing with large deficits, or just tough nights shooting the ball, Durant has shown the ability to be calmer under pressure each time he faces it.
The latest example of that came in the Nets’ 124-121 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday. Durant was having a good game, but when Brooklyn was down 19 points, he needed to step his game up to help his team weather the storm.
Durant ended up scoring 26 of his 43 points in the third quarter as he took advantage of the matchups he was getting. He was able to shoot over anyone that was guarding him and he was masterful in getting to the free-throw line to pile up the points and slow the Pistons’ momentum.
For Durant to be able to do what he did, he had to have a strong mental resolve. He explained postgame how his mental game has grown over the years:
“I feel like I never know how opposing teams are gonna guard me, what schemes they’re gonna throw at me, sometimes, it’s some new stuff that I haven’t seen before. At this point, I’ve seen a lot of different coverages over the last couple of years so I’m trying to stay prepared for that. That’s definitely how I can keep getting better. Just reading the defense even more.
I just think mentally, I understand the game more. I’m not too surprised by anything that’s thrown at me. I could say I’m on a different level mentality-wise than I was as a younger player a few years ago.”
Brooklyn’s next game is at Barclay’s Center on Wednesday against the Golden State Warriors.
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