Kevin Durant will be awesome as long as he can walk. The Rockets need to hope that Durant gets hurt and the Nets decide to trade Kyrie. As long as the Nets have a reasonably healthy KD and an engaged Kyrie, they will be better than the Rockets and the draft swaps won't happen. The Nets have Durant and Kyrie..... possibly have Ben Simmons as well..... they have Joe Harris, Royce O'Neal, Patty Mills, Seth Curry, TJ Warren and Nic Claxton. If they some how remain half way healthy, they will be pretty damn good.
I think Kyrie may be the bigger linchpin than KD. If Kyrie checks out, how long can KD carry the offense? Even if Kyrie plays this year, there is a chance he stiffs the Nets if they don't trade him in the offseason. KD will not be the same KD for much longer as I think age is going to catch up with him.
It is kind of a chicken or egg situation. If Kyrie checks out, then KD will as well and likely will be playing elsewhere. I do agree with you that the Nets are going to learn a lot on Kyrie because he is younger and just sat out a year to make finger paint pictures for the refrigerator. Oddly, it seems like Kyrie believes he can get a max contract from the Nets if he comes in and dominates - so it is possible that Kyrie is up to being the highest volume player on the Nets..... and that doesn't even get into Ben Simmons and how good he will or will not be.
This successfully captures the look, feel and mood of every office birthday party I've ever been to. 10/10.