“You can’t find me back-to-back games in his career, let alone a playoff series where Kevin Durant has looked this bad” - Stephen A. Smith says he has zero confidence in the Brooklyn Nets

Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant has drawn a national spotlight after a pair of disappointing performances in the opening round of the playoffs.

The Brooklyn Nets are down 2-0 against the Boston Celtics as they head home to host Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday.

Durant, who has been a dominant force in the playoffs in his career, has struggled against Boston's tough defense. Durant has averaged 25.0 points per game, but is shooting just 31.7%, including 28.6% from 3-point range, in the series.

On ESPN's "First Take" on Friday, analyst Stephen A. Smith talked about his disbelief about KD's performance in the series. Smith said he's still not changing from his initial pick of the Nets to win the series:

"I am going down with this ship, I'm not jumping off my prediction, but I have zero confidence, zero."

Smith said it's been truly puzzling to see Durant's performances. In his career, KD has always had electric playoff outings. So far in this series, he has looked visibly frustrated, averaging 6.0 turnovers per game.

"I cannot believe what I have seen happen with Kevin Durant," Smith said. "You can't find me back-to-back games in his career, let alone a playoff series, where Kevin Durant has looked this bad. It has never happened.

"And I'm talking to one of his former teammates, and I've talked to other teammates of his, I've talked to other NBA aficionados and what have you, no one has seen Kevin Durant look this bad. He has played over 935 games in his career; he has never looked like this."

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Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant prepares for crucial Game 3

Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Durant

The Eastern Conference matchup between the Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics has delivered on the hype. It's been one of the most dramatic series and looks to be building with excitement.

With Brooklyn on the verge of stealing Game 1 on the road, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum scored a game-winning layup as time expired in a 115-114 Game 1 win on Sunday.

In Game 2, Boston's impressive comeback performance erased a 17-point deficit in the second half to snare a 114-107 win and a 2-0 series lead.

The Nets are going to need to get back on track to have a chance to move forward in the playoffs. For Durant, he's going to have to have a big Game 3 performance if the momentum in this series is to shift.