On Sunday, Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant became the first NBA player since Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan to begin a season with 13 consecutive 25-point games.
Durant was unable to play against LeBron James on Sunday due to an injury to the four-time MVP, but the forward still managed to make an impressive record that Jordan himself would appreciate.
At several NBA betting sites, Kevin Durant has the seventh-best odds to win the MVP in 2023. Few sportsbooks are showing better odds for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Jay Morant, Joel Embiid and other players.
Kevin Durant became the first player to start a season with 13 straight 25-point games since Michael Jordan’s 16-game hitting streak in 1988-89. pic.twitter.com/aV16eNZCvZ
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 12, 2022
In the Bulls’ first 16 games of the 1988-89 season, Jordan scored at least 20 points per game. During that stretch, the guard dropped 52 points against the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets.
Jordan had 12 games with 30-plus points in those 16 starts.
So far this season, Durant is averaging 30.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.9 blocks per game. It will be the first time the two-time NBA champion has averaged 30 points since the 2013-14 season.
Kevin Durant is the first player since Michael Jordan (1988-89) to begin a season with 13 consecutive 25-point games.
Following the loss, the 12-time All-Star was asked about LeBron’s greatness and positive impact on the NBA. “He’s a top-3 player who could ever play the game,” Durant said.
Durant hasn’t faced LeBron since December 2018. “It’s great, we’re useful in old age because people still want to watch us play,” added the striker.
Along with Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant joins Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor and Rick Barry as the only five players in league history to record 14 plus 25 extra points in each season.
Kevin Durant is now one of only five players in NBA history to score 25+ points in each of his team’s first 14+ games — a Nets PR.
The other four players: Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Rick Barry and Michael Jordan.
— Chris Milholen (@CMilholenSB) November 14, 2022
Moreover, in the Nets’ 116-103 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant finished with 31 points, 9 boards and 7 assists in 38 minutes of play. He finished 8-of-16 (50%) from the floor and 2-3 (66.7%) from beyond the arc.
Additionally, the forward has scored at least 30 points in seven of Durant’s 14 games this season. Last Thursday, in the Nets’ 112-85 win over the New York Knicks, the two-time Finals MVP had his first triple-double of the season.
On November 10, Kevin Durant collected 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists in 35 minutes.
In Sunday night’s loss, the Chargers led by 16 with less than four minutes left in the third. However, with 8:27 left in the fourth quarter, the Nets rallied behind two free throws by Durant to cut the deficit to 91-87.
But after that, the Lakers went on a 15-2 run, handing the Nets their seventh loss of the season.
