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Nets Media Day 2019: Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Top Interviews, Videos
September 27, 2019
The Brooklyn Nets continued to usher in a new era of basketball for the franchise by hosting media day on Friday, with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving having the opportunity to speak to reporters.
Both Durant and Irving have previously opened up about their decisions to join Brooklyn. Friday, though, represented the media's first real chance to ask the new Nets stars questions.
Irving was one of the first to take the mic. His free-agent decision was, of course, a hot topic, and he revealed that he, Durant and DeAndre Jordan talked through things on the morning of free agency at 4:16 a.m.:
He also touched on why he did not re-sign with the Boston Celtics despite having previously declared his intentions to do so:
Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks revealed Tuesday the team is "not going to plan on [Durant] playing" in 2019-20 after the then-Golden State Warriors star ruptured his Achilles during the 2019 NBA Finals in June.
In an August interview with Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes, Durant declined to blame the Warriors for rushing him back from a calf injury during the playoffs, saying "Hell, no" when asked if the situation was mishandled.
Irving, though, let it be known on Friday he felt his friend was in no shape to play during the Finals, also noting he would never pressure him to play through injury:
It was then Durant's turn to take the stage, and free agency was again a talking point. He said that he (briefly) considered the possibility of signing with the Warriors, the Los Angeles Clippers or the New York Knicks before choosing the Nets:
He confirmed Irving's story about their conversation in the wee hours of the morning, revealing it was a pretty easy talk:
The two-time Finals MVP also discussed his friendship with Irving:
When it was the center's turn to speak, Jordan acknowledged his conference call with Irving and Durant, noting that it was far from as eventful as one of his previous free-agent experiences:
Brooklyn is coming off a season in which it surprised some people by reaching the postseason. A number of key players from last year's squad, including Caris LeVert, Joe Harris and Spencer Dinwiddie, will return.
Adding Irving and Jordan to that mix has at least one player optimistic about the team's chances even without Durant.
"This isn't a practice season or a trial season," Jordan declared. "We want to go now."
Brooklyn now has a little less than one month before the regular season begins. The Nets' season tips off on Oct. 23 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.