“He never says anything about anybody else, but you get on Bruce Brown for expressing some bravado” - Stephen A. Smith says Kevin Durant is getting on his nerves

Kevin Durant and company find themselves in a sticky situation as they prepare to face the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.

Ben Simmons has been out with a herniated disk and has not played in an NBA game this season. ESPN's Brian Windhorst reported that the Nets plan to play Simmons in Game 4 of the series (on April 25 in Brooklyn), but no timetable has been released for his return by Brooklyn.

Of Simmons' return, Nets coach Steve Nash said:

"It's up to Ben, Ben's back. It's not up to me, any of us other than his back and how we can help that resolve, great. But there's a chance he comes back. There's a chance he doesn't come back."

Durant also talked about what he expects from Simmons:

"I'm not expecting him to play. I'm not putting any pressure on Ben to come out there and hoop, so I'm not expecting him to do anything but just to get his body right and get healthy as fast as he can. In my mind, I'm preparing as if we playing with the team we have."

While the Nets have been patient with Simmons, the media hasn't. On ESPN's "First Take," Smith sounded off his frustrations with how Durant treats his teammates:

"He never got a problem with any of the other players. Don't you notice that? ... I'm just saying it's Kyrie; it's Ben Simmons; it's anybody. I would love to see Kevin Durant go like this, 'Yo, man, we are trying to get the damn championship. Whatever we can get from anybody, we need it or everybody should play."

With the exception of Simmons and Joe Harris (ruled out for the season because of ankle surgery), there are no other issues with availability on the Nets' roster. They meet the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 2022 playoffs on Sunday.

Playoff preview: Kevin Durant's Nets vs Jayson Tatum's Celtics

Kevin Durant, left, and Jayson Tatum

The Boston Celtics meet the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the playoffs for a second straight year, but with the seedings reversed. Brooklyn (44-38) finished seventh in the Eastern Conference, while Boston (44-38) was second this season.

With Robert Williams probably out for the series, the Celtics defense (second-best in the league) has taken a a major hit. However, the Nets (19th-best) aren't great on the defensive end.

Kevin Durant was without a doubt the best defensive player in the play-in game against the Cavaliers in a 115-108 win on Tuesday. If Durant plays defense like he did against the Cavs, the Celtics will have their work cut out for them to reach the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The formidable trio of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart are touted to be the favorites on Sunday, with -150 on the money line.