Kevin Durant’s time with the Brooklyn Nets was supposed to mark the beginning of a dynasty.
Instead, it never came close.
Durant revisited his time in Brooklyn in the latest episode of the “Mind the Game” podcast with Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and KD's former Nets head coach, Steve Nash.
The two-time champion detailed what went wrong for a team that once featured himself, Kyrie Irving and, later, James Harden on a star-studded roster.
“There was just so much stuff going on around us,” Durant admitted.
“We got GMs going to other teams, we got coaches going to other teams, we got players forcing trades. We got Ben Simmons, his back (is messed up),” he continued.
Durant signed with the Nets in 2019, just months after tearing his Achilles in the NBA Finals while playing for the Golden State Warriors against the Toronto Raptors.
The Nets soon added Irving to pair with KD and later traded for Harden, forming a superstar trio that generated massive expectations but never delivered lasting success. Nash was hired as head coach before the 2020–21 season.
Brooklyn’s utmost potential never materialized as the trio played just 16 games altogether with injuries, trades, vaccine mandates, and internal friction derailed the team’s title hopes.
Brooklyn’s deepest playoff run during the Durant-Irving-Harden era came in 2021, when the Nets lost to the eventual champions Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference semifinals in seven games. The team never advanced past the second round.
“I just signed that deal, you [Nash] had just signed a deal, but I feel like we were secure. But everything else around us was going [expletive],” ” Durant admitted.
By February 2022, Harden was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers and Nash was fired after a 2–5 start to the 2022–23 season. Irving was dealt to the Dallas Mavericks months later and Durant got shipped to the Phoenix Suns.
“I felt like we were locked in on the same page and trying to do something special. But your hands were tied a lot, because as a coach, you’ve got to deal with so much,” the 36-year-old said.
Nash agreed with Durant’s assessment, saying, “I didn’t get to coach as much as I wanted to,” prompting Durant to express disappointment in not seeing Nash at his full potential as a head coach.
.@SteveNash wasn’t able to be the coach he needed to be in Brooklyn.
— Mind the Game (@mindthegamepod) July 8, 2025
“I think we didn’t get the full Steve Nash like I wanted, like you probably wanted. There were just too many distractions in the way, and you can’t win that way,” Durant reiterated.
"I think we didn't get the full Steve Nash like I wanted."@KDTrey5 explains why Brooklyn didn’t workout the way it should’ve and more on Part 2 of a new episode. Watch on our YouTube, @PrimeVideo or listen wherever you get your podcasts https://t.co/n2swVHpna1
— Mind the Game (@mindthegamepod) July 8, 2025
Despite what unfolded, the 15-time All-Star bared he enjoyed parts of the experience and had no regrets about joining the Nets.
“That first year, man, the most fun ball I had. I enjoyed Brooklyn a lot. I loved playing for Brooklyn,” the 2014 MVP shared.
