Knicks takeaways from Wednesday's loss to Nets, including too much Kevin Durant to handle

The Knicks couldn't hold on to a 21-point lead, falling to the Nets 110-98 on Wednesday night.

Here are the key takeaways …

- With Mitchell Robinson out due to a non-COVID illness, the Knicks started Jericho Sims at center, flanked by Alec Burks, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett, and Obi Toppin.

- After sitting out the last two games due to ankle soreness, Seth Curry proved his value to the Nets right away, hitting a three-pointer on Brooklyn’s first possession before going on to score eight of Brooklyn’s first 12 points.

Both teams played with a lot of energy in the first quarter, and though Barrett started ice cold at 1-for-7, he converted a physical, last-second layup to cap off a 10-0 Knicks’ run, giving the home team a four-point lead heading into the second.

- The three-point shot played a big role early. The Knicks started 6-of-14 from beyond the arc, while the Nets started out hitting just three of their first 12 three-pointers. In the second, Kyrie Irving finally snapped a 19-0 Knicks run with a three-pointer about two and a half minutes into the period.

Durant helped the Nets cut the lead down to seven points, but the Knicks continued to sizzle from downtown, as Barrett, Fournier, Toppin and Burks all hit from beyond the arc to put the Knicks back up by 17 points.

Barrett shrugged off that cold start to finish the first half with 16 points to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Burks led all scorers with 18 points, hitting three of the Knicks’ 11 first-half threes. The Knicks shot 11-of-26 (42.3 percent) from beyond the arc, compared to Brooklyn’s 5-of-18 (27.8 percent). Irving scored 16 for the Nets, while Durant had nine points.

- A Burks three in the opening seconds of the third gave the Knicks their largest lead (to that point) of 20 points. The Nets played some decent defense at the start of the third, but they just couldn’t hit their shots. Meanwhile, Sims brought some fantastic energy for the Knicks, throwing down a lob over Andre Drummond before skying in for an offensive rebound and put-back shortly thereafter.

Durant and Irving finally knocked down a few shots to help the Nets cut the lead to 13, and a Durant three in the final half-minute made it just a 10-point game heading into the fourth. Durant and Irving combined for 37 points through the first three quarters, and shot a combined 13-of-34 (38.2 percent).

- The Nets carried all of the momentum into the fourth, with Patty Mills and Irving each hitting threes to cut the lead to four points in the first minute of play. Later, an Irving steal led to a vicious Durant slam, and just like that, the lead was down to one. A Kessler Edwards put-back then gave Brooklyn an 85-84 lead, completely erasing a 21-point deficit.

With four and half minutes to go, the game was deadlocked at 96-all. The Nets scored the next five points, including an Irving three off an offensive rebound, and with 1:32 left, Curry hit another huge three to make it an eight-point lead. That would be the dagger, as the Knicks couldn't recover.

- Durant finished with a triple-double, going for 33 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds, while Irving added 24 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. For the Knicks, Burks had 24, Barrett went for 23, and Toppin finished with 19 points.

The Nets ended up shooting 14-of-41 (34.1 percent) from three, while the Knicks cooled off to finish 13-of-38 (34.2 percent) from long range.

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What's next

The Knicks head to Washington for a Friday night matchup with the Wizards at 7:00 p.m. They will then finish their season at home against Toronto on Sunday at 7:00 p.m.

The Nets host Cleveland on Friday at 7:30 p.m. before finishing out their regular season with the Indiana Pacers on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. before heading into the Play-In Tournament.