Kevin Durant returned to the Brooklyn Nets line-up after injury to combine with Kyrie Irving for 67 points in a 128-119 win over challengers Phoenix Suns on Sunday night.
The Brooklyn Nets continue to flex their muscle ahead of the NBA play-offs, with Durant’s return boosting their line-up, while James Harden is close too.
Durant played 28 minutes off the bench for the Nets, scoring 33 points, with six rebounds and four assists, swiftly finding his groove after a thigh contusion.
Irving top scored with 34 points along with six rebounds and 12 assists, while Blake Griffin chipped in with 16 points too.
“I think Kevin’s shown that his scoring doesn’t seem to get affected by a long layoff,” Nets coach Steve Nash said.
“Whether it was coming off the Achilles or coming off the hamstring, Kevin seems to come right back in; his rhythm and timing are excellent.
“It’s very impressive, for sure. I don’t want to diminish how special they are. But it’s more the norm than I think than extraordinary for those two.”
The result improved the Nets record to 41-20 while the Suns are 42-18.
Elsewhere, Stephen Curry scored 37 points as the Golden State Warriors continued their good run with a 117-113 win over the Sacramento Kings to move to 31-30.
The Milwaukee Bucks went down to the Atlanta Hawks 111-104, despite Giannis Antetokounmpo scoring 31 points and having 14 rebounds.
The Portland Trail Blazers slipped to a 120-113 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, while the Boston Celtics were also losers, going down 125-104 to the Charlotte Hornets.
