Photo Credit: Ned Dishman/Getty Images Basketball What’s Next for Nets after Kyrie Irving Injury? by Daniel Flores February 21, 2020 The Brooklyn Nets were the talk of New York City after landing Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving during this past off season. Kevin Durant, who had suffered a ruptured achilles tendon in Game 5 of the NBA Finals with the Warriors, would be out for the 2019-20 season. Kyrie Irving, on the other hand, was healthy going into the season and had a magnificent opening game for the Brooklyn Nets with 50 points. However, the Nets will have to figure out how play the rest of the season without their two superstars. The Irving Predicament It was announced on Thursday that Irving will have to undergo season ending surgery on his right shoulder. Previously, he missed 26 games due to the injury and only played in 20 games this season. The interesting part is that the Nets were 8-12 in the 20 games that Irving played in and 17-17 without him. Currently Brooklyn is 25-29, sitting at the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Although the team had a losing record in games Irving played in, it was only 20 games. The reality is that fans don’t know how far a healthy Irving could have led the Nets. Irving averaged 27.4 points per game, 5.2 rebounds per game, and 6.4 assists per game. Brooklyn as a team has seemed to be more together without Irving. Of course, it has to be taken into account that Irving still needed time to gel with his new teammates. Twenty games isn’t a sufficient metric to determine overall teammate compatibility, generally. Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris Levert have the Brooklyn back court looking very impressive. Dinwiddie continues to get better season by season and has become a more complete player in all facets of his game. Levert who was a 2016 first round draft pick is emerging as a star and continues to make improvements in his game. In Conclusion There will be a lot of expectations for the 2020-21 Brooklyn Nets team when Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant return but for this current team they are going at a steady pace. If they continue to fight and play together like they have all season, the sky is the limit for this team moving forward. Post Views: 705 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Daniel Flores Daniel is a college student pursuing a career in sports media. He currently is a staff writer for Double G Sports. You can hear him interviewing guests in sports and entertainment weekly on the Dansportsnews and Friends Podcast. Latest posts by Daniel Flores (see all) Roselle Catholic’s CJ Wilcher ready for next step at Xavier - April 30, 2020 Randy Foye on Brooklyn Nets – “They’re Gonna Be A Contender” - April 22, 2020 Q&A with Archbishop Wood Guard Rahsool Diggins - April 10, 2020 Q&A with Blair Academy guard Kyle Cuffe, Jr. - April 9, 2020 Related TopicsBrooklyn NetsCaris LeVertKevin DurantKyrie IrvingSpencer Dinwiddie Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 Passion For Sports Led Kelly Burke To Career As Broadcaster by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on November 16, 2020 XFL Co-Owner Dany Garcia Talks Business, Serving Others at espnW Women + Sports Summit by Candace Cordelia | posted on October 23, 2020 Women in Sports: Ariel Epstein, On-Air Host at SportsGrid (VIDEO) by Anthony Paradiso | posted on March 12, 2021 Exclusive Interview: SNY Personality, Maria Marino, Shares Career Journey (VIDEO) by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on January 28, 2021 More in Basketball You Know I’m Right, Episode 111: New York Giants’ Insider John Schmeelk (Audio/Video) On the 111th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 107: New York Post’s Columnist Mike Vaccaro (Audio/Video) On the 107th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 97: SNY’s Michelle Margaux (Audio/Video) On the 97th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined SNY’s... WNBA Rolling Out Red Carpet For Upcoming 25th Anniversary Season The WNBA’s 25th season also marks the debut of the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup. Baseline Jumper, Episode 115: NBA All-Star Recap (Audio) Knicks name Leon Rose as New President