Kevin Durant on Kyrie, Harden Injuries: 'We Wish Our Brothers Were out There'

It wasn't long ago that the Brooklyn Nets looked like the surefire championship favorites with a 2-0 lead over the Milwaukee Bucks in their second-round playoff series. Now, Kyrie Irving (ankle) has joined James Harden (hamstring) on the list of injured players and the series is tied 2-2.

"I feel more for them than for me," Kevin Durant said Monday. "It's got nothing to do with me. I wish my brothers were out there playing, I wish they were healthy. ... The rest of the guys who are out there healthy enough to play, we gotta come out there and play as hard as we can with possession. That's always been the mindset for us every day is to play focused and disciplined basketball. Nothing changes, but we wish our brothers were out there."

The Nets confirmed Irving will miss Tuesday's Game 5 with the ankle injury he suffered in the first half of Sunday's Game 4. Harden is yet to play in this series.

It is difficult to overstate how important the absence of both players would be in what has turned into a best-of-three series.

While some of Brooklyn's role players, such as Joe Harris, Bruce Brown and Blake Griffin, have played well for stretches in the postseason, much of that can be attributed to the presence of at least two of the three stars being on the floor.

Opposing defenses have to commit so much attention to Durant, Irving and Harden that it often opens up shots and driving lanes for teammates.

To Brooklyn's credit, it played much of the season with at least one of the three stars sidelined and still managed to clinch the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. But going up against a dangerous Bucks squad with the trio of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday providing plenty of firepower may be a different story.

Durant impressed with 28 points, 13 rebounds and five assists in Game 4, but the Nets still lost by double digits and failed to crack the 100-point mark for the second straight game.

It is no coincidence a team that was built to outscore opponents with three of the best players in the league lost the last two games as its offense struggled, and it is difficult to see it getting much better without Irving or Harden even with Durant leading the way.

Perhaps Harden will return, as head coach Steve Nash told reporters he is unsure of the guard's status even though the nine-time All-Star has been working out. It would be a significant boost for a shorthanded team looking to deliver on championship expectations.