Oklahoma City Thunder take on Miami Heat, which sees Durant face James.
Ahead of the All-Star weekend, the NBA serves up a treat on Thursday night as Kevin Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder take on LeBron James and the Miami Heat.
James has made his claim for the MVP award after a run of six consecutive games shooting 30 points or more and 60% or better from the field.
With Durant and Russell Westbrook leading the Thunder to second spot in the Western Conference, they will need a big effort all-round in their first meeting at the Chesapeake Energy Arena since the Finals last year.
Miami secured the win that night, which enabled them to have home court advantage for the next three clashes and ultimately saw them win the title.
The last meeting between these two took place on Christmas Day, with the Heat once again coming out on top.
The Thunder (39-13) currently have a better record than the Heat (35-14), with both trailing the San Antonio Spurs in the race for the best regular season record.
Having finished second to James in last year’s MVP voting and losing in the Finals, it has been difficult not to make this into a battle between the top two stars in the NBA.
Durant is averaging career-bests in almost every department so far this season, but will be fully focused on getting the win against their biggest rivals.
Both men will be back in action on the weekend representing the best of the East and West, but for now there is plenty at stake with the Thunder looking to avenge last year’s defeat.
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