NEW YORK – With a double-digit lead reduced to just one point in the last quarter of the Brooklyn Nets game Saturday night against the Miami Heat, Kyrie Irving took over. He jumped on the 3-point clutch, made driving layups and made important free throws to help lift the Nets to a 128-124 victory.
In the final stretch, Irving said his mindset was, “It’s time to win.”
“I’ve always said that throughout my career,” said Irving. “When you get to that point, you obviously just want to put yourself on the defensive line, stop and I felt like we did that.”
The victory resulted in a two-game losing streak for the Nets, who lost two games at the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this week. Irving’s 18 points in the fourth quarter were the highest he has scored in the last quarter since joining Brooklyn.
“We had two defeats in which we had to learn very quickly,” said Irving. “And we move on to the next night. And I feel like we’ve put the effort into sprints and, obviously, we want to be more consistent with that – and it will take time. I’m happy with the effort tonight.”
Irving finished with 28 points. Kevin Durant had the team’s record of 31 points for the Nets, while Joe Harris added 23 points, including seven 3s. James Harden had 12 points and 11 assists.
Bam Adebayo finished with 41 points, the best of his career, five rebounds and nine assists for the Heat.
“It was time for Bam to be 40 in terms of getting many of those moves that he is working on off-season,” said Irving. “Just seeing him grow up since high school, being able to take over at the moment for a kind of Miami team with an insufficient team, is good to see.”
The Nets entered the game on Saturday with the goal of improving defensively. Although they could not fully contain Adebayo, there were signs of improvement.
After being defeated 50-29 on Friday in Cleveland, the Nets recovered in their defensive recovery against the Heat. Brooklyn had a defensive rebound rate of 81.3% on Saturday – the third highest in a game this season – compared to just 58.1% the night before.
Nets coach Steve Nash continued to experiment with lineups involving the team’s three All-Stars. Harden played 11 minutes with Durant and Irving on the bench. And while Harden’s 12 points have been his lowest since January 2020, his five straight games with double-digit assists have already tied for the fourth longest streak in Nets history.
“It’s good not to have to score so much to give ourselves a chance to win a game,” said Harden. “I can go out there and just be an ace and shoot when it’s available and still involve the guys – and still have a chance to win the game.”
“This is a change,” added Harden. “But for me, just being the player I am, impacting the game in other ways besides scoring.”
After the dispute, Irving and Adebayo tried to change their shirts on the court, before a Heat guard led Adebayo away. This season, changing shirts on the court is a violation of the health and safety rules of the NBA coronavirus.
“I just want to follow the NBA protocol,” said Irving, smiling, before adding, “By the way, I have the shirt.”