NEW YORK — Kevin Durant is back on the court, just in time to go back to the Bay Area.
Durant rejoined the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, a day ahead of his return to the place where Stephen Curry said the Warriors played “some of the best basketball l think the world has ever seen” when Durant was one of them.
“That was an amazing three years of a moment in time,” Curry said.
Now in his first season playing for the Nets, Durant is set to resume what’s been a stop-and-start season for the star forward.
He has missed three games for coronavirus health and safety protocol reasons, facing a mandatory seven-day quarantine after being a close contact of a team employee who tested positive for the virus.
Golden State’s players were certainly planning on him being in Brooklyn’s lineup.
The trouble started in a bizarre and frustrating night for Durant and the Nets against Toronto last Friday. Durant was told he couldn’t start the game shortly before tipoff, then was cleared to enter in the first quarter, resulting in his first appearance off the bench in his 867-game career.
He was then pulled for good in the third quarter, throwing a water bottle in frustration before the Nets went on to lose the game.
“But I’m back out there now. It is what it is,” Durant said. “I was a little upset during and after the game, but it’s cool now. I’m ready to play.”
Durant continued to test negative during his absence and was able to return to practice Friday. The Nets left later for San Francisco, where they start a five-game trip Saturday.
FRIDAY’S GAMES
KNICKS 109, WIZARDS 91: Julius Randle had 24 points and 18 rebounds, and New York cruised to a victory in Washington.
Derrick Rose scored 14 points in 20 efficient minutes off the bench in his second game for the Knicks, who stopped a two-game skid.
Russell Westbrook had 23 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Wizards, who lacked a reliable second option with NBA scoring leader Bradley Beal sitting out to rest for the first time this season.
MAVERICKS 143, PELICANS 130: Luka Doncic scored a career-high 46 points, Kristaps Porzingis added 36 and Dallas overcame Zion Williamson’s career-best 36 points in a victory at home.
Doncic, who also had 12 assists and eight rebounds, connected on three of four Dallas 3-pointers in just 93 seconds as the Mavericks made 13 of their first 15 shots in the third quarter. The Mavericks matched their season best with a fourth consecutive victory and beat the Pelicans for the fifth straight time.
Williamson set a New Orleans franchise record by making all 10 of his shots in the first half and finished 14 of 15. His only miss was a wide-open 3 early in the second half.
HORNETS 120, TIMBERWOLVES 114: Terry Rozier scored 41 points and rookie LaMelo Ball had 20 points and 11 rebounds to help Charlotte win at home.
SPURS 125, HAWKS 114: DeMar DeRozan scored 23 points and San Antonio capitalized on a dominant finish to the first half to get a victory in Atlanta.
CLIPPERS 125, BULLS 106: Kawhi Leonard scored 33 points, Lou Williams and Marcus Morris came up big in the fourth quarter, and Los Angeles won at Chicago.
Morris scored 15 of his 20 points in the fourth, and Williams added 11 of his 17 in the final quarter.
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