Kyrie sewed his face. no plans for KD this year

Leader Kyrie Irving of the Nets inadvertently received an elbow in the face during a resumption match at the Brooklyn practice center on Tuesday and was sent to the hospital to be assessed, but Sean's general manager Marks said the team was cautious.

"I would not even want to speculate at all, but I think it's just a case of due diligence," said Marks, adding that his coach Kenny Atkinson had accompanied Irving to the hospital. "Kyrie is going and getting checked as he would anywhere else and we are always sending staff with him, and it's also a great opportunity for Kenny."

Marks, speaking to reporters at the team's media day, also said the Nets do not plan to have Kevin Durant this season. He should miss the season after his Achilles tendon injury in Game 5 of the Golden State Warriors in the fifth game of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.

Marks said that Durant's recovery was going well and that he thought the star player of the 10 times wanted to play that season. Durant will have a say in determining when he will be ready, said Marks, but the team takes a long-term approach and plans not to play.

Irving and Durant were the two free agents that the Nets acquired in a radical transformation at the opening of the free agency on June 30th.

Marks congratulated his new leader on Tuesday, saying Irving had already shown leadership and intensity at the team's summer meetings. He said that Irving had been "religious" in his participation in training sessions at the team's practice center. Marks said that he could already see the camaraderie developing between the team's veterans and the young players.

The training camp officially opens for the Nets Saturday. They participate in the NBA preparatory China Games, facing the Los Angeles Lakers on October 10 in Shanghai and October 12 in Shenzhen. They will open the regular season on October 23 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.