Brooklyn Nets: 3 things to watch in another Battle of New York

3. Will Kurucs be unleashed again on the Knicks?

Rookie forward Rodions Kurucs is already something of a cult hero to fans of the Brooklyn Nets.

A second-round pick from Latvia who didn’t play a lot the last two seasons with FC Barcelona in Spain (the club took issue with a young player actually wanting to leave the Liga ACB and play in the NBA), Kurucs was all but certainly thought to be not quite ready for prime time.

Then he opened the preseason against the New York Knicks and poured in 10 points in 12 minutes off the bench.

The next time he faced the Knicks in the preseason finale, Kurucs dropped in 13 points with four rebounds — three on the offensive end — in 12 minutes.

Then in 17 minutes in the home opener against New York on Oct. 19, Kurucs went off for 11 points and five rebounds.

He’s missed the last three games with a sprained left ankle sustained early in the fourth quarter of Brooklyn’s loss on Oct. 20 at Indiana.

As of this writing, Kurucs’ injury status had not been updated, but here’s hoping the Lanky Latvian can get back on the floor and resume his role at the designated Knick killer.