Durant back, will start for Nets against Heat on Thursday

NEW YORK (AP) — Kevin Durant will start for the Brooklyn Nets against Miami after missing 21 games with a sprained left knee ligament. Jacque Vaughn, coaching the team with Steve Nash in health and safety protocols, said there would be no preset limits for how much Durant could play, saying they would keep an open dialogue during the game. The Nets brought Durant off the bench in his first game after returning from a lengthy injury absence last season, but Vaughn said the All-Star forward was ready to play from the start this time. The Nets were 5-16 in Durant’s absence, falling from second place to eighth in the Eastern Conference.