The New Orleans Pelicans sent a statement to the rest of the league with a 130-108 pounding of the Brooklyn Nets in their opening game of the season on Wednesday night.

Playing away from home, the Pelicans enjoyed a red-hot start, with eight points in the first quarter from Zion Williamson helping to build a 32-14 lead at the first break.

The Nets showed some fight in the second quarter, putting up 36 points in the frame to trim the margin to 58-50 as Kevin Durant had 21 in the first half, but the Pelicans came out of halftime and dropped 40 points in the third period to put the game to bed.

In his first game since May 2021, Williamson looked in tremendous shape, scoring 25 points on 11-of-22 shooting while adding nine rebounds, three assists and four steals. 

He was supported in fine fashion by Brandon Ingram, who top-scored for the Pelicans with 28 points (10-of-17 shooting), seven rebounds and five assists, and C.J. McCollum chipped in 21 points and six assists as well.

For the Nets, Durant showed he is still arguably the best scorer in the league with 32 points on 11-of-21 shooting, and he also tallied four blocks in an impressive two-way performance despite his team's shortcomings.

Box-office Banchero validates top draft selection 

Paolo Banchero was not thought to be an option for the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick until the day of the NBA Draft, but he showed exactly why they took him with a spectacular debut in a 113-109 loss on the road to the Detroit Pistons.

Banchero shattered the Magic record for points by a debuting rookie – previously set at 13 – with 27 on 11-of-18 shooting, and he also grabbed nine rebounds and dished five assists in a complete performance, posting a plus/minus of plus two in his 35 minutes.

It was a great debut for rookie Jaden Ivey as well, who the Pistons selected with the fifth overall pick, as he put up 19 points on eight-of-15 shooting with four assists and three steals.

Ivey complemented last year's top pick Cade Cunningham beautifully, with Cunningham running the show on his way to 18 points (six-of-16 shooting) and 10 assists, while newly acquired Bojan Bogdanovic top-scored for Detroit with 24 points on eight-of-16 shooting after hitting six of his first seven three-point attempts.

Morant lifts the Grizzlies in overtime

Ja Morant had his potential game-winner wiped off the board due to a contentious charging foul, but his Memphis Grizzlies got the job done at home in overtime to defeat the New York Knicks 115-112.

Morant was the game's top-scorer with 34 points on 11-of-24 shooting, and his nine assists was equal with New York's Jalen Brunson for the most in the contest.

Starting in place of the injured Jaren Jackson Jr, Santi Aldama gave a good performance with 18 points (seven-of-14 shooting) and 11 rebounds, while Julius Randle was the Knicks' best player, scoring 24 points (nine-of-16 shooting) with 11 rebounds and six assists.

Mitchell shines in Cavaliers debut despite loss

The Cleveland Cavaliers were treated to a terrific debut from star offseason acquisition Donovan Mitchell, but it was not enough to overcome an early Darius Garland injury in a 108-105 road loss to the Toronto Raptors.

All-Star point guard Garland only played 13 minutes before his night ended with a rough poke to the eye in the second quarter. Taking over some of Garland's point guard responsibilities, Mitchell dished off nine assists as well as leading the game in scoring with 31 on 12-of-21 shooting.

All five Raptors starters scored at least 15 points in classic Toronto fashion, with Pascal Siakam tallying 23 on nine-of-20 shooting with 11 rebounds and four steals, while reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes had 15 points (seven-of-14 shooting) with seven assists and a game-high plus/minus of plus 20 in his 32 minutes.

Kevin Durant's trade request was the sort of "test" the Brooklyn Nets needed to bond and get better, according to Kyrie Irving.

The Nets will begin their 2022-23 season on Wednesday against the New Orleans Pelicans after a topsy-turvy offseason.

Both Durant and Irving are set to be in the Brooklyn line-up, despite the pair appearing to be on their way out when the 2014 MVP asked for a trade.

A deal with the Nets proved difficult to do, as Durant has four years remaining on his contract, meaning the team asked for a huge price in talks.

It was then reported Durant had returned to the Nets but promised to stay only if head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks were replaced.

Eventually, a statement from Marks said Durant had "agreed to move forward with our partnership" regardless.

That might not seem ideal preparation for the season, but Irving suggested the saga had actually brought the Nets closer.

"When Kev made that request, I feel like we got better," he told Stadium. "Afterwards, not initially. Now, where we are now, I feel like we can honestly say we got better.

"We know the principles that are needed for success, but without going through some tests in the summer time or during the season, we wouldn't be able to be as close and bonded as we are now."

Irving added: "[Durant] is one of the greatest to ever do it, and he wants his chance to win. Give him his request.

"But other than that, I think he believes not only in me but in himself."

Ben Simmons acknowledges that part of being Ben Simmons means he is going to hear plenty of criticism via social media.

The Brooklyn Nets swingman, who has often been on the wrong end of tough criticism, also understands that it is just social media and he can’t let it bother him.

The 26-year-old once again received plenty of jibes after a video of him airballing a shot during an event in a Brooklyn park on Sunday went viral.

It was just another instance of insults directed at the former number one overall pick, but he understands he just has to brush it off.

"It finds me all the time," Simmons told ESPN prior to Wednesday night's preseason game against the Milwaukee Bucks. "And it doesn't f---ing stop. Sometimes I'm even sick of it, but then I'm like, 'OK, I'm Ben Simmons, you know? It comes with being Ben Simmons right now'.

"Even the other day there was a clip of me airballing a shot at the park. Meanwhile, like 10 guys airballed multiple shots. So it's like people will find one clip and try to make it that everything - like Ben can't do [this or that].

"Like come on man, you think I'm just airballing every shot? It's not true. But it comes with it, and you got to have tough skin and I realize that, but nah, I can't take everything personally. It's social media."

And there has been plenty of hostility aimed his way over social media in the last 16 months - despite him not playing a game in that time.

In the 2021 Eastern Conference semifinals, he was ridiculed mercilessly for passing up a wide-open dunk late in the Philadelphia 76ers’ Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

That was his final game for the Sixers, as he sat out last season due to mental health concerns while being called soft by his critics. He then never suited up for the Nets after being acquired at the trade deadline due to a lingering back injury.

Simmons, though, tells himself the reason he is on the receiving end of so much mockery is because he can still produce at a high level on the court.

"Because people know what I can do, what I'm capable of," Simmons said. "I believe that's what it is. Like if I was somebody that wasn't capable of doing certain things, I don't think people would be on my ass as much.

"And I don't mind it because it kind of motivates me in a way. Obviously, sometimes it's a lot for anybody to deal with that, but I look at it a little bit like a respect thing, in a way."

Three-time NBA All-Star Ben Simmons says he is simply grateful be back on the court after making his long-awaited debut for the Brooklyn Nets in preseason on Monday.

Simmons played 19 minutes in the Nets' 127-108 loss to his former franchise, the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday.

The Australian guard scored six points with five assists and four rebounds in his return, after mental health and injury issues meant he did not play at all last season, even after being traded from the 76ers to the Nets in February.

"I'm grateful just to be able to step on that floor," Simmons said. "Step on an NBA floor again. I had a lot of fun out there.

"That's the one thing, I thought I was going to be nervous, but I wasn't nervous. I was excited."

Simmons' return, which was rusty at times, marked 470 days between games for the 2018 NBA Rookie of the Year.

It is also the first time the Nets have fielded Simmons alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, offering excitement for the franchise.

"Ben's playing with a totally different unit than he has in the past, different style," Nets head coach Steve Nash said.

"It's going to be ugly at times, but I thought as the half wore on you definitely started to see glimpses of the potential. The way the ball moved. The way they were hounding the basketball defensively.

"I thought Ben looked pretty good overall and grew into the game through the half."

Simmons admitted that working alongside Durant and Irving would take time but he was excited by the learning process as the Nets build cohesion.

"It was fun messing up because I know how good we can be," Simmons said. "And seeing just different looks and opportunities there with Kevin and Ky and Joe [Harris]. Seeing where they want the ball and just how things are going to work and flow.

"But the only way you learn is to make mistakes so I had a few out there tonight and I can go back and watch film and say I know what I did wrong and how to fix that, so it's all a learning process for me so it's good."

The NBA is back, which means excitement for most fanbases – but anxiety for others.

The new season should ensure a clean slate for everyone, but some situations have been allowed to fester in recent months without the distraction of on-court action.

Now, even with basketball returning, developments around Kevin Durant's future might prove every bit as intriguing to the neutral as anything that happens in the regular season.

And Durant and the Brooklyn Nets are not the only player-team combo in a tricky spot heading into the year...

Everyone at the Lakers

Before considering the wide-ranging implications of Durant's trade request, let's check in on last year's team in crisis.

Plenty of outsiders could have forecast difficulties for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2021-22, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis joined in a 'big three' by Russell Westbrook – at this stage in his career, consistent only in using up a huge number of possessions.

Westbrook had averaged a usage rate above 30 per cent in every season between 2014-15 and 2020-21, with his average over the seven seasons (34.6 per cent) only narrowly trailing James Harden's league-leading 34.7 per cent (minimum 500 possessions). A ball-dominant player on often mediocre teams, Westbrook's winning percentage of 59.2 ranked 109th over this period among those to play 100 or more games. Harden (66.2) was a far more respectable 29th.

Although his usage dipped to 27.5 per cent around better players in LA, Westbrook remained every bit as erratic as expected and, unfortunately for the Lakers, played more than 500 more minutes than any team-mate – comfortably ahead of an ageing James and bulkier Davis.

The three superstars started just 21 games together and even then only scraped a winning record at 11-10.

Having missed the playoffs – and even the play-in – in 11th in the West, the Lakers fired coach Frank Vogel, perhaps optimistically hoping he alone was the problem, and brought back each of James, Davis and Westbrook.

Seemingly determined to further upset a team who won the title just two years ago, the Lakers were also linked with a move for Kyrie Irving before settling instead on Patrick Beverley, who might prove only marginally less disruptive.

Westbrook and Beverley have repeatedly clashed in the past, although the new Lakers signing has described his team-mate as "someone I always wanted to play with", praising his "competitive spirit, that fire, that will, that dog, that nastiness, that grit".

New coach Darvin Ham thinks the pair can work together, but the potential for fireworks is considerable even before taking into account James' own "competitive spirit".

Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving at the Nets

The 2019 free agency moves for Durant and Irving certainly made the Nets relevant. But they haven't yet made them successful. And right now, Brooklyn might be the most explosive environment in the NBA.

Durant missed their first year together with an Achilles injury sustained playing for the Golden State Warriors, yet the Nets have still only won seven playoff games in the past three postseasons – all seven of those wins coming in a short-lived 2020-21 run.

Last season, as they had been in their first season with Durant and Irving, Brooklyn were swept in the first round. It concluded a miserable campaign that was not about to get better in the offseason.

With Irving unvaccinated and so unable to play in New York City until March, he and Durant started only 17 games together in the regular season. The Nets had started the season with their own 'big three', but Harden – much to his frustration – appeared just twice alongside the star pairing before he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Ben Simmons came in the other direction and did not play once.

Far from a happy camp, when Irving then opted in to the final year of his contract in late June, the Nets were vulnerable to a trade request from Durant, which quickly followed.

However, with four years remaining on his own deal and Brooklyn asking for a huge price in trade talks, it was reported Durant had returned to the Nets and promised to stay if head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks were replaced.

Ultimately, Durant "agreed to move forward with our partnership" – as Marks phrased it – regardless, with Nash saying in September his relationship with the superstar was "good".

"I love the guy," added Nash, who understood Durant being "seething" at the end of the season. "Families have issues. We had a moment, and it's behind us. That's what happens."

In theory – especially if Simmons can return to his two-time All-Defensive First Team best – the Nets could have a great team in 2022-23.

Yet based on how this project has gone so far, it is not difficult to imagine a scenario in which Brooklyn endure another desperately disappointing season and are again left attempting to convince Durant to stay.

James Harden at the 76ers

The 76ers moved one miserable superstar in Simmons for another in Harden, which was only enough to take them as far as the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year.

And en route to that unsatisfactory conclusion, team-mate Joel Embiid was not shy in criticising Harden, repeatedly calling on him to be more aggressive while recognising he is no longer "the Houston James Harden".

It was an understandable complaint; Harden attempted only 13.6 field goals per game for the Sixers in the regular season – little more than half the number of shots he was taking in 2018-19 for the Houston Rockets (24.5), when he scored a career-high 36.1 points per game. He was also only making 40.2 per cent of his field goal attempts in Philly, down on every other season in his career.

So far, it is fair to say this has not worked. Doc Rivers, in a training camp clip published by the NBA, told Harden he and Embiid needed to "listen to each other" and acknowledged the partnership needed work as it was "unnatural".

Echoing some of Embiid's complaints, coach Rivers said: "You can't just say you're a facilitator. I need you to be a scorer and a facilitator."

Rivers for now believes it can still be fixed. "When it clicks, James, we're going to be unbeatable," he told a player who, for his part, agreed to a restructured contract that allowed Philly to bolster their roster in the offseason.

But this team – and certainly Embiid – might argue more help would not be required if Harden played in the manner he is capable.

"We've got to establish Joel and you – it's a pecking order," added Rivers. "This ain't a democracy."

Embiid may not believe this is "the Houston James Harden", but the team and Harden himself seemingly do, with the former Rocket announcing: "If my conditioning can be level with my skill set and my IQ and the work that I put in, it's MVP – and I feel like my conditioning is where it needs to be."

Harden needs to start showing that, or this time his team might tire of him, rather than the other way around.

Jaylen Brown at the Celtics

Little has gone to plan for the Boston Celtics since winning Game 3 of the 2022 NBA Finals, as they lost the next three to the Warriors and then saw preparations for a bounce-back season in 2022-23 rocked by a number of key absences.

Boston will begin the year without new signing Danilo Gallinari, who tore his ACL playing for Italy, Robert Williams, who has also undergone knee surgery, and, crucially, coach Ime Udoka.

Udoka had turned around his first season as a head coach spectacularly, with the Celtics tied for ninth in the East at the turn of the year after a 17-19 start before leading the conference the rest of the way (34-12) to take the second seed.

But a year-long suspension for Udoka "for violations of team policies" was announced by the team last month.

And even between the ultimately disappointing postseason and repeatedly disrupted preseason, not everything was rosy, with Boston also impacted by the Durant saga.

When Durant looked to be on the move, reports claimed the Celtics had offered the Nets a package that included Jaylen Brown. That trade did not materialise, of course, but it is difficult to imagine Brown was too impressed.

In recent seasons, Brown has been hugely valuable to the Celtics – not least because he is being paid below his value.

Brown is one of only 11 players who has scored at least 1,400 points at an average of at least 23.5 per game in each of the past two seasons. Of the other 10, four have current or future contracts with an average annual value of more than $50m, another four are being paid over $40m per year, and the final two are bringing in a salary in excess of $30m a season.

Brown's deal, which ranks outside the top 50 contracts in the NBA in both total value and average annual value, earns him $26.6m each year.

And the rules around NBA extensions will prevent Brown being paid on par with his contemporaries unless he makes All-NBA in one of the two seasons remaining on his contract.

In theory, that carrot should encourage Brown to enjoy another big season, but at a franchise as fractured as the Celtics have suddenly become, focus could understandably drift instead towards free agency in 2024.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the Thunder

Unlike the other teams on this list, the Oklahoma City Thunder do not have the pressure of needing to win now – but that is part of the problem.

OKC moved on their ageing stars, loaded up on draft picks and put together a young core that includes Chet Holmgren, Josh Giddey and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. That is all very exciting... or at least it will be.

Rookie Holmgren is down for the year, seemingly making this another season in which the Thunder will lose games and then see what they can do in the draft.

That is no great issue for 20-year-old Holmgren or 19-year-old Giddey, but it does not suit Gilgeous-Alexander, now 24 and entering his fifth year, quite so much – even if he also starts the year injured.

Among the 63 players to score 2,000 or more points across the past two seasons combined, Gilgeous-Alexander ranked 18th for points per game (24.2). He ranked 61st for wins (32).

This is not a case of an average player stat-padding on a bad team; he is simply too good to be in this situation.

And having agreed a five-year extension in August ahead of Holmgren's injury, it appeared Gilgeous-Alexander had unknowingly signed up for more of the same.

He disagrees, insisting: "I know what I signed up for when I signed a five-year extension. I don't think we're going to be losing for much longer. It's not like I signed up to lose."

But lose they will, if they have any sense – and past experience suggests they do.

Without Holmgren, the Thunder are not going to be in any position to seriously compete, which opens up the possibility to pick high in a draft that includes a potentially generational talent in Victor Wembanyama.

At some stage, OKC will be ready, but that is not now, and Gilgeous-Alexander could be forgiven for finding his patience waning.

Kevin Durant said he’s looking forward to another season with the Brooklyn Nets, instead of looking back on a tumultuous offseason that saw the NBA superstar request a trade and reportedly ask for his coach and general manager’s dismissal.

"Can we move on past that at some point?" Durant told reporters following Friday’s practice. "I know it’s an interesting story. I know that it took up most of the offseason and drama sells. I get that, but I didn’t miss any games, I didn’t miss any practices.

"I’m still here, so hopefully we can move past that."

Durant is back for a third season in Brooklyn after eventually rescinding the trade demand that created a firestorm around NBA circles for much of the summer. The 2013-14 league MVP and two-time NBA Finals MVP acknowledged during Monday’s media day that he’s no longer at odds with the organisation after ironing out his differences in a lengthy discussion with team owner Joe Tsai in August.

"I was upset," Durant stated. "And as a family, they understood that I was upset, some of the stuff they agreed with. So we talked about it, and it was over a couple of months, a couple of weeks, towards the end of that where we talked about it.

"We came out and we voiced all our concerns about how we can all be better. And it just worked out from there, and I’m glad I’m here now."

Durant refused to expound on the rumours that he also requested the firings of head coach Steve Nash and general manager Sean Marks following the Nets’ disappointing and injury-plagued 2021-22 season.

"There’s a lot of (stuff) that was inaccurate," he said. "But it’s like I don’t want to go through it right now."

Nash also said earlier this week that he didn’t entirely believe the reports that Durant had asked for his ousting.

"I never thought that was 100 per cent," he said. "It’s not black and white like that, so there was a lot of factors. A lot of things behind the scenes. A lot of things that are reported are not 100 per cent accurate. So you get fragmented bits of truth. You get things that are flat out not true. It happens. So I never really got caught up in all that stuff.”

With his differences behind him, Durant said he’s eagerly awaiting the new season and the chance for the Nets to erase the memory of a turbulent 2021-22 campaign that saw the franchise trade disgruntled All-Star James Harden midseason and had Kyrie Irving limited to just 29 games, in large part due to New York City’s vaccination requirement that prevented the star point guard from playing most of the team’s home games.

The Nets also head into 2022-23 with a healthy Ben Simmons, the key player Brooklyn received from the Philadelphia 76ers in the Harden trade. The three-time All-Star has yet to appear in a game with the Nets and missed all of last season due to a lingering feud with his former team and a back injury that later required surgery.

"When you look at the grand scheme of things, we haven’t been healthy at all for two years," Durant said. "Each playoffs we didn’t have major guys, (they) miss minutes. Not just role players, but guys that make a lot of money.

"When you got $50 million dollars on your bench this last playoffs with Joe [Harris] and Ben and then the playoffs before that, I want to see what our team looks like in full, with guys being healthy, with us having a little bit of continuity. So we’ll see what happens."

The way Brooklyn Nets coach Steve Nash sees it, it does not matter if Ben Simmons ever takes a shot for his team because he does so many other things well.

Two-time NBA All-Defensive First Teamer Simmons is set to make his debut for the Nets this season after he missed all last season while waiting for a trade out of Philadelphia and then dealing with rehab from back surgery as well as ongoing mental health issues.

"Very unique," Nash said of Simmons after the second full practice of training camp on Wednesday. "That's what makes Ben great.

"That's why I don't care if he ever shoots a jump shot for the Brooklyn Nets. He's welcome to, but that is not what makes him special and not what we need. He's a great complement to our team, and he's an incredible basketball player because of his versatility."

The Nets have the luxury of having two standout scorers on their roster in Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, which should allow Simmons to play a more wide-ranging role.

"I think they'll have a certain element of cohesion out of the gates," Nash said of his star trio. "Because they're all really good basketball players, but hopefully it's something that evolves. And they can continue to find ways to make each other better. I think that's the beauty, that they actually fit really well together, but it may take time."

With Durant and Irving handling the bulk of the offense, Simmons will be free to focus on defense and rebounding while creating open looks for his star teammates.

"You're playing with some great NBA players, some of the greatest," Simmons said. "So, for me, it's just playing alongside them, figuring out where they want their shots, how they move, different spots on the floor where I need to be. It's just timing."

Simmons' career 8.1 rebounds per game should benefit the Nets, who lost one of the league's best rebounding guards when James Harden was dealt to the 76ers.

"He helps us for sure defensively, rebounding," Nash said. "And not only the talent he has, but also just size. Overall team size is something we struggled with."

Nash said he wouldn't have a problem giving the 6-foot-10, 230-pound Simmons minutes at centre when the situation calls for it.

"If he's the 'lone big,' that's a role we would definitely play him at," he said. "But he's also our playmaker and point guard."

Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash said there are no lingering ill effects from Kevin Durant’s trade request or his demand that Nash be fired this summer. 

Nash told reporters Tuesday that he met with Durant last month to "move forward" and "clear the air".   

"We're fine," Nash said after the Nets' first practice of the season. "We're good. Ever since we talked, it's been like nothing's changed. I have a long history with Kevin. I love the guy. Families have issues. We had a moment and it's behind us. That's what happens. It's a common situation in the league. 

"We all were hurting, seething, to go through what we went through last year, not being able to overcome all that adversity. Sometimes you lose perspective because you expect to win, but the reality is we were able to talk and discuss what we can improve on from last year, and also keep perspective. We went through a ton of stuff."

Durant shook the NBA this offseason when he demanded to be traded, citing the Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat as his preferred destinations.  

When it became clear that an ideal trade was not imminent, Durant met with Nets owner Joe Tsai and reportedly said he was willing to remain in Brooklyn if Nash and general manager Sean Marks were replaced.  

Nash pushed back Tuesday that Durant ever demanded a coaching change.  

"I never thought that was 100 percent," Nash said. "There was a lot of things. It's not black and white like that, so there was a lot of factors. A lot of things behind the scenes.

"A lot of things reported are not accurate. A lot of things that are reported are not 100 percent accurate. So you get fragmented bits of truth. You get things that are flat out not true. It happens... so I never really get caught up in all that stuff. 

"I'm going to hear it from Kevin when the time is right. I'm going to talk to Sean, I'm going to talk to all the parties involved. So you just work through it step by step. You don't overreact. We stay calm and work on communication and facts and here we are."

One of the central challenges for Nash this season will be to keep his team focused on the court despite the seemingly never-ending storm of storylines surrounding the Nets.  

"I think we're in a really good position to start the season," Nash said. "And regardless of the way everyone wants to talk about drama all the time, we've been through this. I played in the league for 17, 18 years… It does not impact me the way maybe it impacts people on the street or in the media, so it was never really as a big a deal to me. 

"I always thought we'd have our moment, we'd discuss it and we would choose a course and we're fortunate to all be in the gym working together again and excited. I think the energy's been outstanding."

Ben Simmons has criticised the Philadelphia 76ers for not giving him the mental health help he required.

The point guard sat out the entirety of last season while dealing with mental health struggles and his time with the Sixers, who drafted him as the first overall pick in 2016, came to an end in February.

A trade with the Brooklyn Nets was completed at the February trade deadline, with James Harden moving in the opposite direction.

Simmons has now claimed he did not get the support he needed from his former team when speaking on JJ Redick's 'Old Man and the Three' podcast.

"I was in such a bad place where I was like, f***, I'm trying to get here and you guys are, like, throwing all these other things at me to where you're not helping. And that's all I wanted, was help," he said.

"I didn't feel like I got (help) from coaches, team-mates, I won't say all team-mates, because there are great guys on that team that did reach out and are still my friends. But I didn't feel like I got that, and it was just a tough place for me."

Simmons also believes the team did not handle things correctly, though he admits he must shoulder some responsibility, and cited Doc Rivers' approach that ultimately led to Simmons' suspension.

"I actually spoke to Doc before practice. I was like, 'Doc, I'm not ready. Mentally, I'm not ready. Please just understand that,'" he added.

"I tried to let him know prior, and he was like, 'Well, I'm going to put you in anyway.' I'm like, 'All right.' He told me to get in. I looked at him. It was like one minute into practice, like, 'Ben, get in.'

"I'm like, first of all, no one's doing that. You're doing this on purpose. And that's how I felt, too. It seems like everyone's trying to f*** with me now. I'm getting fined for not lifting weights, but physically I'm one of the strongest guys on the team.

"So now they're fining me for little things. It was just a build-up. Obviously, I didn't handle things the right way, but, also, the team didn't either, and the people who had that power."

Currently carrying an injury, Simmons is expected to be ready for the start of training camp and is excited to join his new team-mates, sharing his belief they can go all the way.

"It's going to be sick. I can't wait. I'm so excited. Got a new number, new jersey. I'm just looking forward to it," he declared.

"I think we have a special team. I think if we get it all together, we're going to be the champions. That's the end goal."

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving thinks his team "needed" their 4-0 loss to the Boston Celtics in last season's NBA playoffs.

That chastening first-round exit to Irving's former team brought to an end a frustrating campaign for the much-fancied Nets.

With Irving being teamed with Kevin Durant and James Harden, many felt Brooklyn were the favourites to go all the way.

However, Irving only made 29 appearances in all for the Nets, mainly due to his unvaccinated status meaning he could not play any home games until late in the season when the ban in New York on unvaccinated players was lifted.

Durant also missed some games through injury, while Harden struggled for form before being traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Ben Simmons, who is yet to make his Nets debut.

Speaking on Twitch for streamer KaiCenat, Irving said: "We got 4-0'd my G, we got 4-0'd. It was meant to happen like that. Motivation, bro.

"We needed that humbling experience, especially going against the Celtics. It was already built to be that match-up.

"We're going to see them again, we're going to have to. They're going to be where they're going to be. But those young'uns over there in Boston, bro, I got to see them grow up.

"So to see them do what they did last year on the Finals stage, making it that far, I'm glad they had to go through us."

Irving – who exercised his $37million player option with the Nets for next season in June – still managed to average 27.4 points per game last year, as well as 4.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists.

Kevin Durant is set to stay with the Brooklyn Nets after franchise and the 12-time NBA All-Star "agreed to move forward with our partnership".

Durant's future has been shrouded in doubt after the 33-year-old superstar reportedly asked for a trade at the end of June.

Nets general manager Sean Marks on Tuesday released a statement making it clear Durant is going nowhere after a meeting in which team owners Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, and head coach Steve Kerr, were present.

"Steve Nash and I, together with Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles yesterday," the statement said.

"We have agreed to move forward with our partnership. We are focusing on basketball, with one collective goal in mind: build a lasting franchise to bring a championship to Brooklyn."

It was reported this month that Durant had given the Nets an ultimatum over his future, stating that he would only stay if Marks and Nash were fired.

Tsai threw his support behind Marks and Nash, tweeting: "Our front office and coaching staff have my support. We will make decisions in the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets."

Forward Durant is about to enter the first year of his four-year, $198million contract extension with the Nets.

The two-time NBA champion joined Brooklyn in a sign-and-trade deal in 2019 and penned a contract extension with the Nets 12 months ago.

Ex-Golden State Warrior Durant averaged 29.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.4 assists from 55 games last season for a Nets team that was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics.

Kevin Durant is set to stay with the Brooklyn Nets after franchise and the 12-time NBA All-Star "agreed to move forward with our partnership".

Durant's future has been shrouded in doubt after the 33-year-old superstar reportedly asked for a trade at the end of June.

Nets general manager Sean Marks on Tuesday released a statement making it clear Durant is going nowhere after a meeting in which team owners Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, and head coach Steve Kerr, were present.

"Steve Nash and I, together with Joe Tsai and Clara Wu Tsai, met with Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman in Los Angeles yesterday," the statement said.

"We have agreed to move forward with our partnership. We are focusing on basketball, with one collective goal in mind: build a lasting franchise to bring a championship to Brooklyn."

Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers have reached a settlement agreement after the Brooklyn Nets guard filed a grievance to recoup a portion of the nearly $20million withheld during the 2021-22 season, according to ESPN.

Simmons did not play for the 76ers during the 2021-22 season after demanding a trade in light of their messy fallout from their 2021 playoffs exit.

The All-Star missed their training camp and did not play in the preseason, with the 76ers subsequently opting to withhold his salary. As Simmons' holdout extended, even infamously declining head coach Doc Rivers' request to play as a substitute in a drill at training, the 76ers' continued to withhold payments.

Simmons would cite mental health reasons for his absence, and was eventually traded to the Nets in February.

The guard, alongside the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), filed the grievance in April after Simmons' representatives and the 76ers could not reach a settlement, according to reports.

However, a settlement agreement has now been reached after entering into an arbitration process prior to judgement, with both sides agreeing to confidentiality on the exact financial details.

The 76ers had claimed that Simmons was in breach of his contract under the NBA and NBPA collective bargaining agreement for his continued absence.

Simmons is yet to play for the Nets following his trade due to a back injury, but is hopeful of a franchise debut in the 2022-23 season after surgery in May.

Just hours after reports came out detailing how Kevin Durant gave the Brooklyn Nets an ultimatum about his future with the franchise, team owner Joe Tsai has sensationally thrown his support behind general manager Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash.

In a report from The Athletic's Shams Charania, it states Durant had a meeting with Tsai on Monday where he reiterated his trade request, as well as the bombshell that he will refuse to remain with the team unless Marks and Nash are both fired.

Durant, 33, is about to enter the first year of his four-year, $198million contract extension with the Nets, meaning there is no way for the two-time NBA Finals MVP to literally force his way out. To leave Brooklyn, the team will need to trade him, and there is no guarantee that is in their plans, despite Durant's requests.

In a clear statement of where his loyalty lies, Tsai tweeted: "Our front office and coaching staff have my support. We will make decisions in the best interest of the Brooklyn Nets."

The Athletic's report also revealed the Nets "engaged in conversations with almost every team in the league" after Durant's initial trade request, but no team has been able to meet their asking price, which is said to be one of the biggest in NBA history.

The Boston Celtics, the Toronto Raptors and the Miami Heat are mentioned as the three teams most likely to aggressively pursue a trade, with 25-year-old Celtics wing Jaylen Brown considered the best player being included in negotiations.

Kevin Durant has doubled down on his stance that he won't play for the Brooklyn Nets, at least as the organisation is currently constituted. 

In a meeting with franchise owner Joe Tsai, Durant demanded that either he be traded to another team or that the Nets fire the pairing of general manager Sean Marks and head coach Steve Nash, The Athletic reported Monday. 

Durant and Tsai spoke in London over the weekend, and The Athletic reported that the tone of the meeting was professional. 

Durant has four years and $198 million left on the contract extension he signed last summer but made his trade demands public over a month ago on June 30. 

The 12-time All-Star set the NBA world ablaze by demanding a trade, but no team has been able to pull off the massive deal to bring Durant to a new contender. 

Earlier this summer, Durant said that he wanted to end up either with the Miami Heat or the Phoenix Suns, but the Nets now have some hope of keeping the two-time Finals MVP. 

That is, if Tsai is willing to upend the franchise's leadership structure. 

Durant, who will turn 34 before the start of next season, has played a total of 90 regular season games since signing with Brooklyn in 2019. 

The much-anticipated trio of Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden played only 10 games together.

Harden was traded for massive question mark Ben Simmons, Irving's future is unclear, and now the Nets are now at a massive organisational crossroads.