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“Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving had success, but their games don’t fit together”: When Ryan Hollins rightfully predicted the Brooklyn Nets disastrous fate

Advait Jajodia
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“Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving had success, but their games don’t fit together”: When Ryan Hollins rightfully predicted the Brooklyn Nets disastrous fate back in 2019

Back in 2019, Ryan Hollins was one of the very few analysts to have believed that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving’s move to Brooklyn won’t be fruitful.

Yet another season with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the pack, and yet another disappointing exit from the playoffs for the Brooklyn Nets.

In this past 2021-2022 season, as soon as Kai was given the green light to play games despite not having taken the vaccines, Steve Nash’s boys immediately became one of the strong title contenders, and rightfully so. The Nets had the All-Star duo of KD and Irving, surrounded by a strong supporting cast including Seth Curry, Blake Griffin, Andre Drummond, and Patty Mills, among many others. However, Brooklyn finished 7th in the East and eventually got swept by Jayson Tatum’s Boston Celtics in the first round itself.

Also Read: When Dennis Rodman boldly claimed him along with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen could defend KD with ease

To be fair, even in their wildest dreams, no one really thought that these Nets could underperform to this degree. In fact, when the prolific scoring duo of Durant and Kyrie arrived in the summer of 2019, a few basketball enthusiasts deemed them to be the most offensively gifted team we’ve seen in a long time.

However, analyst Ryan Hollins was one of the very few, and the correct ones, who believed that this Nets team was ‘overrated’ and didn’t get all the hype surrounding them.

Ryan Hollins questioned Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving’s fit together

When the two future HOFers had joined forces back in the summer of 2019, the former 10-year veteran wasn’t “fully sold” on Brooklyn. Hollins had claimed:

“I am intrigued, I am not fully sold on Brooklyn right now, I am not sold on Brooklyn. I am not all in.”

Hollins reiterated his words in the June of 2020:

“I wanna see how those guys mindsets come in and works. I want to see who the Brooklyn Nets hire as a coach. If it’s not Tyronn Lue, I’m going to very, very concerned. Same time I was concerned with Frank Vogel, but Frank Vogel got LeBron to buy in and play defense. I never remembered LeBron James taking a charge unless he was accidentally in your way. So, I’m concerned about they’re bringing in as head coach and coaching those guys from a mental aspect.

When I look at their games, they DON’T fit. KD’s one of the greatest scorers that we’ve seen in our time. He’s one of the more talented players that we ever seen. They both had success, but their games don’t quite fit together. How are they going to fit together are the biggest questions. When the media stirs up and can’t wait to catch KD on the internet and have Kyrie in a Postgame Live, like how are they going to fit? Alienate the rest of the team or are they going to embrace the guys around them? Are they going to bring in a locker room full of veterans?

I am so intrigued on how that is going to work out. Brooklyn was really in a very good spot, and now it’s nothing but media and turmoil in there. But I don’t blame Brooklyn for going after it.”

Also Read: When Kyrie Irving challenged the Lakers legend to a one-on-one and eventually got schooled in an NBA game

About the author

Advait Jajodia

Advait Jajodia

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Advait Jajodia, a seasoned NBA journalist, has had a passion for the game for over a decade. His journey from admiring Kobe Bryant's precision to being in awe of Stephen Curry's long-range mastery instilled a profound understanding of basketball. With a background as a two-time National-level player, Advait uses his experience on the hardwood to offer insightful analysis. Over three years of dedicated sports journalism has equipped the 21-year-old with a unique perspective, reflected in his prolific portfolio of 3,350+ articles.

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