
The Brooklyn Nets defeated the Miami Heat 128-124 on Saturday evening. It marked the team’s first victory since Kyrie Irving’s return from his prolonged sabbatical, and reaffirmed in his mind that his NBA Finals prediction is right on the money.
Heading into the outing, Brooklyn had lost two straight games to the Cleveland Cavaliers and seemed to be in all sorts of disarray. While the trifecta of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden was as lethal as promised offensively, they did nothing to address the Nets’ one major weakness.
Fortunately, despite everything, Brooklyn was able to secure victory on Saturday against a Heat squad that was without Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro. Irving scored 28 points, six rebounds, and seven assists; Durant chipped in a team high 31 points; and Harden recorded 12 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds in the winning effort.
More than anything, this particular W reaffirmed in Irving’s mind that his squad had what it took to go all the way to the NBA Finals.
“I give people [something] to talk about everyday,” he said after the game. “It comes with the business, and living a very public life as an athlete or an entertainer, I know we have supporters and we have a lot of doubters.
“So being on this stage, it is the main stage, but you know the main stage I’m talking about. We’re just putting it out as a goal of ours that we came together and this team, we’re focused on that. That’s it.”
This echoed a message he posted on Instagram earlier in the day.
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“Don’t trip,” he wrote. “It’s a long journey. We will be on that stage. The stage where the best of the best meet. … You know. The main stage. Where those who can, do. And those who cannot talk about those that are doing. If you rolling with us, great. Let’s rock. If you’re not, you know you wanna talk about our greatness anyway.”
Clearly Irving is still very confident in the Nets’ ability to make the NBA Finals.
Will his confidence be rewarded? Time will tell.
Yikes. https://t.co/4R7ubXnRE3
— Game 7 (@game7__) January 23, 2021
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Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.