5 highest scoring games of Kevin Durant's Playoff career

Kevin Durant is arguably one of the greatest pure shooters in the history of the NBA. He is a 4-time scoring champion and can score over any defender without any struggle. He won the regular season MVP award in 2014 as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Durant, who now plays for the Golden State Warriors, was also awarded the Finals MVP in 2017 when they defeated Cleveland Cavaliers 4-1.

Kevin reached the playoffs for eight consecutive years and has had some great performances in the playoffs, averaging over 25 points in each of the Playoffs that he has played. We take a look at Durant's five high-scoring games in the playoffs.

#5 41 vs Denver Nuggets, Game 5, NBA 2011 (First round)

#35 Kevin Durant

Stat line: 41 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal on 51.9% shooting

KD and the Thunder were 3-1 up in the First round of the NBA Playoffs in 2011 against the Denver Nuggets. After stealing one in Denver, the OKC Thunder came home for Game 5 to defend their home court and wrap up the series. Meanwhile, Denver was looking to fight hard and extend the series.

In Game 5, Kevin Durant dropped 41 points as they beat the Nuggets 100-97 and eliminated them from Playoffs. He matched his playoffs-high at that time. The Thunder overcame a 9-point deficit and Durant took over the game in the clutch time.

Durant was +7 on the game and had 5 rebounds along with 2 assists. Durant shot the ball well consistently and went for 14-27 from the field with a field-goal percentage of 51.8 despite just making 2 of his 10 3-point attempts.

The Thunder came roaring back after losing a close game 4 and Durant was the main reason why.

#4 41 vs Denver Nuggets, Game 1, NBA 2011(First round)

Denver Nuggets v Oklahoma City Thunder - Game One

Stat line: 41 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal on 59.1% shooting and 3-of-6 on 3s

The Oklahoma City Thunder were playing against the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2011 Playoffs. The Thunder had the home court advantage over Denver, thus starting the series with game 1 at home.

Both Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant went off in this game as they beat Denver Nuggets 107-103 and jumped to an early lead 1-0 in the series. Westbrook had 31 points while Durant had 41 points and shot 13-22 on a 59 percentage shooting from the field. He also had 9 rebounds and 2 assists.

This was the second time in his career that Durant reached playoffs. The Oklahoma City Thunder defended their home court by winning the game 2 as well with Kevin Durant again be spectacular.

#3 41 vs San Antonio Spurs, Game 4, West Semis 2016

Durant with a lay-up

Stat line: 41 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists on 56% shooting.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were up against the San Antonio Spurs in the Semifinals of the 2016 playoffs. The Thunder lost game 1 at home and that too by an astronomical margin of 32 points, however, they lost their home court advantage early in the series by letting Game 2 slip. They then beat OKC on road in game 3 to regain the home court advantage. OKC entered the game 4, desperate to even the series.

It was Kevin Durant, who scored 41 points along with 4 rebounds and 5 assists and helped OKC down the Spurs. On a night when Russell Westbrook couldn't get it going, Durant shot the ball efficiently and went for 14-25 with 56 percent shooting from the field.

With the confidence back as the series got tied at 2-2, the Thunder then went on to beat San Antonio Spurs in the next two games. They won Game 5 on the road and defended their home court in game 6 and won the series 4-2.

They moved on to the Conference Finals to face the Golden State Warriors and the rest is history.

#2 41 at Houston, Game 3, NBA 2013 (First round)

Durant with a thunderous slam

Stat line: 41 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 1 block

In the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs, after having two strong performances at home where the Thunder won by an average of 16 points, Kevin Durant came into game 3 at the Toyota Center to play against James Harden and the Houston Rockets.

Kevin Durant had a monster-performance as he posted 41 points shooting 13-30 with field goal percentage of 43.3%. The Thunder entered this game without their All-Star PG Russell Westbrook, who was out indefinitely with a torn meniscus he suffered in Game 1.

Durant had to do the bulk of the work and he once again rose to the occasion. He also had 14 rebounds and 4 assists. The Rockets did not have any answer to Durant's offense as he scored against any defender they put upon him with ease.

The OKC Thunder went on to win this game 104-101. Though they lost the game 5 at home, they beat Rockets in game 6 on road yet again to move to the next round. Losing game 5 at home showed why this performance was a much-need one for the Thunder.

#1 43 at Cleveland, Game 3, NBA Finals 2018

Kevin Durant shoots over George Hill

Stat line: 43 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists on 65% shooting and 5-of-7 on 3s

After defending their home court, Warriors entered the game 3 of the NBA Finals 2018 looking to steal one in Cleveland. While Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson who combined for 7-27 from the field went ice cold, it was Kevin Durant's heroics that lifted Warriors past Cavaliers.

Kevin Durant shot 15-23 with 65 % shooting from the field and shot 6-9 from behind the arc. He shot a dagger three on the left wing which was similar to the one he shot over LeBron James in the game 3 of the 2017 Finals. He also had 13 rebounds along with 7 assists.

This game showed how Kevin Durant is capable of being a one-man wrecking crew and when no one else showed up, Kevin did. This being a road game, this performance will be remembered by NBA fans for a long time.