Kevin Durant on Nets making hustle plays: "Toughest part of the game… Continue to consistently do that every single night”

Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets have strung together a series of wins after a poor start and are looking like a legitimate threat again. They've played with better intensity and hustle during this stretch, the most significant improvement since Jacque Vaughn took over from Steve Nash as the team's head coach.

Durant highlighted the importance of maintaining these habits after the Nets extended their winning streak to four games with a 112-100 road win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday, saying (via Nets Videos):

"Lot of these plays that you make, sometimes you just got to be there to protect your teammates... We've been preaching that, and the hustle plays are coming with that.

"That's the toughest part of the game. It's to continue to consistently do that every single night, and that's what the great teams do. They dial that up every single night. We're building something we gotta continue to keep fine-tuning."

The Nets started the season as one of the worst defensive teams. They were in the bottom five of the defensive ratings. However, since Vaughn took over, they've improved gradually in that area and are now ranked as the 13th-best defensive team.

The Nets have led the league in blocks per game during their 11-3 run over the last 14 games. They are 11th in defensive rebounding. During that stretch, the Nets have also ranked fifth in opposition field goal percentage (45.4%).

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Kevin Durant leading Brooklyn Nets' charge amid their revival

Kevin Durant has been excellent amid the Brooklyn Nets' revival over their last 14 games. The former MVP has played 13 games during that period, averaging a team-high 36.8 minutes of playing time, 29.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game, shooting 59.9% from the floor. He has also put in the work defensively, blocking 1.5 shots per game.

KD has continued to be a professional amid the chaos surrounding the Nets over the last year. The story has been no different this season, with the team getting off to an underwhelming start. Meanwhile, Steve Nash got fired, Ben Simmons' struggled, and Kyrie Irving's off-court controversies once again overshadowed the Nets' goals for the year.

Kevin Durant's patience seems to have paid off, as the Brooklyn Nets are performing as expected. They are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 17-12 record. It's a giant leap considering the Nets were looking like a play-in team for the second year running at the start of the season.

Their revival has made the East even more interesting, with the conference stacked with contenders like the Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers firing on all cylinders.

The Brooklyn Nets have had a relatively easy schedule over their last 14 games. It'll be interesting to see if they can perform at the same level against stronger opposition.