The Houston Rockets suffered a nail-biting loss to the Nuggets on Friday. If Kevin Durant had delivered, the outcome might have been different.
That's not to square the entire loss on his shoulders. That would not be fair. Alperen Sengun also came up short in this contest with just 14 points.
The Rockets' two best players have different roles. Sengun is supposed to keep the engine humming throughout an entire contest. Durant is supposed to carry the Rockets down the stretch when the chips are on the table.
He did not do that on Friday night.