Kevin Durant isn’t going out like this.

The criticisms surrounding his performance in Game 2 have cut deep, and he’ll use this moment to rise above it all. It isn’t the fact that the Nets are just losing, but he’s getting soundly outplayed by Jayson Tatum on the floor as well. This will be Durant’s “Y’all must have forgot” moment on the court.

It isn’t like he didn’t have good looks to hit shots on Wednesday. The shocking part about his performance is the fact that he was missing shots he’d normally hit with his eyes closed. He’ll take all of the criticism to heart and come back with a vengeance on Saturday.

This is a must-win for the Nets, and they’ll act accordingly on their home floor in front of what should be a loud crowd. The Celtics swarming Durant becomes less of an issue as long as the other players are hitting their shots. That was the case in the second game of the series, and I’m expecting it to continue to be so with the Brooklyn crowd on fire.

Meanwhile, Kyrie Irving will be highlighted for more than just hand gestures in this game. Given the way the series has gone, along with the outside noise, I’m banking on Brooklyn’s two stars turning on the fireworks and running away with this one.

I’m laying the points and taking the Nets big.