Nets open back-to-back with loss to Hornets; Durant scores 29 but uncertain whether he will play Monday

How are the Nets going to manage Kevin Durant’s workload?

Durant, who is back from a ruptured Achilles tendon that cost him 18 months of basketball action, began his first back-to-back of the early Nets season in the starting lineup Sunday night, scoring 29 points in 36 minutes in a 106-104 loss to the Hornets in Charlotte. Kyrie Irving, who missed most of last season with injuries, scored 25 points in 36 minutes for the Nets (2-1) in their first loss of the season.

Gordon Hayward had 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Hornets.

Nets coach Steve Nash said it has yet to be determined whether Durant will play the second game of the back-to-back at home against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

He is playing in his first real NBA action since his season-ending injury in June of 2019.

“Obviously, I want to play as much as I can, but I definitely want to trust in the training staff and the organization and do what’s best and consult with them on it as well,” Durant said after the Christmas Day game against the Celtics. “So we’ll see, but I plan on playing next game.”

He is still collecting data from himself, registering how his body feels in the hours and days immediately after stepping on the floor.

“I think it’s a decision that we’ll make [Monday]. I almost don’t want to have a preconceived plan,” said Nets coach Steve Nash. “We have ideas about limiting the amount of minutes and impact and minute congestion for sure. We want to protect Kevin coming off 18 months of recovery. And the rest of the guys as well. We want to be careful with different people, with different vulnerabilities and try to make as smart long-term decisions as we can.

“I don’t know that I can say there’s a plan right now. It’s more like we’ll continually monitor the situation and make sure that we make the safest or soundest decisions for the group in that moment. So that decision will probably be made [Monday].”

This is the first of seven sets of back-to-back games the Nets play in the first half of the season between now and March 3. The Nets have three back-to-backs in January, including four games in five days in one grueling span.

They have a near-equally difficult stretch of four games in six nights in early February.

“Like I said, it would be ideal if the minutes were shared around and guys could get some rest, but that’s not always something that you could count on, so I think we’ll have to see there,” Nash said.

For the Nets, and other teams, this process will be tricky. Load management has become a talking point in recent seasons, as teams have exploited loopholes that have allowed them to rest their best players during marquee matchups. This season, the league instituted a $100,000 fine if they are found to be resting healthy players on nationally televised games.