Kyrie Irving

Jscc said:

I think the closest thing to a rich man's Daniel Gibson was Ben Gordon. Kyrie is leagues above what Ben Gordon was/is.

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That might be similar, but the problem was Ben could create his shot as well. He took at least double what Boobie could inside the three point line.

It's just my opinion, but a richer version of Gibson still can't create off the dribble. They're regulated to spot shooting, not really more than 15 points a game. Let's say the absolute opposite of a rich Gibson would be Corey Maggette, who did nothing but drive. And Gordon was in between the two, with absolutely no dish game that combo/point guards were capable of having.

Willard513 said:

No, your wrong for thinking that kyrie was that 4 years ago

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So, you know what I was thinking 4 years ago? Are we related?

gourimoko said:

I wouldn't read too much into this. It's an Opp FG% graph which is really a stretch to measure the entirety of a perimeter defender's performance.

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Well, I don't know what they actually used, but in the case of total Opp FG%, it's typically
bigs who help that tend to be burnt in the category when nobody can be bothered to pick up their man. In Kyrie's case, because he can't stay in front of his man, it would reflect on the help he's getting ... and Mozgov has clearly upgraded our rim protection.

I don't know why 82games still hasn't updated since 2/18, but they had James's Opp PER at 10.5, Shumpert's at 8.4, JR Smith's at 12.5, Delly's at 14.1, and Kyrie's at 17.0.

So, it's not like other perimeter players aren't putting up solid defensive numbers on the team.

The concern is that a smart opponent will attack a team's weakest point..

rabman_gold said:

That might be similar, but the problem was Ben could create his shot as well. He took at least double what Boobie could inside the three point line.

It's just my opinion, but a richer version of Gibson still can't create off the dribble. They're regulated to spot shooting, not really more than 15 points a game. Let's say the absolute opposite of a rich Gibson would be Corey Maggette, who did nothing but drive. And Gordon was in between the two, with absolutely no dish game that combo/point guards were capable of having.

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He's not very rich then... but hey, the term is open to interpretation.

Fact is, AT THE TIME ... Kyrie was not finishing very well, he wasn't running the team very well ... but he was shooting terrific. Is that enough to be a top-PG?

Not in my book.

As the season progressed his finishing improved a lot - and he hit a number of game winners to boot. He also got a 2-man game going with Jamison. Did that combination of shooting PLUS scoring make him a top-PG?

Again, not in my book.

But obviously there are fans who don't care how the ball goes in the bucket as long as it goes in the bucket.

I think I was the first person on the board to compare Kyrie to Stephen Curry, and at the time I was laughed at for thinking so little of Irving to compare him to Steph, lol.

JonFromVA still has us talking about Rich man's Boobie?

Im excited the most for Kyrie this playoffs. While he has had some great moments during the regular season over the years, I think he will be even better in the playoffs, especially with LBJ on our side.

Back to Kyrie, I can't wait to see him play tomorrow. He deserves this. He put up with all the shit we went through the first 3 years. Yes, he himself didn't always handle himself well. But instead of bailing, he came back, even when some were doubting if he was even a max guy (which I thought was absurd, of course he is).

The guy still took the faith in us, re-signed this summer. Didn't have to do it. Could have took the qualifying offer, played out his season, then left in free agency.

So no, LeBron James did not start all of this, it was Kyrie. Without having the faith to stick out with us, even though the first 3 years were up and down, NONE of this happens. LeBron does not come back, no trade for Kevin Love. We potentially go into the season ready to build the team around Andrew Wiggins.

So Kyrie got the ball rolling, signed that extension, took the leap of faith with us, and it's all been pie in the sky since then.

So thank you Kyrie, you are the man.

Anyone watching the Wizards/Raptors will understand why Kyrie is so much better than John Wall... Can you imagine if teams actually gave Irving a "cushion" because he can't shoot?

gourimoko said:

Anyone watching the Wizards/Raptors will understand why Kyrie is so much better than John Wall... Can you imagine if teams actually gave Irving a "cushion" because he can't shoot?

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I posted this in another thread but I'll say it again here... Kyrie will be known as unanimously as the best point guard in the East after the playoffs are over... Nice of Lowry and Wall to start it off with a shit show.

warriorsz32 said:

I posted this in another thread but I'll say it again here... Kyrie will be known as unanimously as the best point guard in the East after the playoffs are over... Nice of Lowry and Wall to start it off with a shit show.

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If anyone didn't believe Kyrie was better than Lowry and Wall, then they weren't paying attention. But I totally agree with you; that conversation should end this summer.

Wall airball.....

from midrange....

It's pretty simple to plan for Wall... Sag off him about 5 feet so he can't blow by you, go under picks, literally force him to shoot midrange or 3 pointers all game. Even if he's hitting one game, he's not consistent enough of a shooter to press up on him.

Yeah, if anyone didn't already think Kyrie is the best GUARD in the East...then they aren't doing it right.

It's laughable that some people still thought Wall is better than Kyrie... If you're watching this Raptors-Wizards game, this is exactly why Kyrie has always been better than Wall. There is no game plan to stop Kyrie... Press him? He'll blow by you and finish with some crazy shot at the rim... Sag off? He'll bury the jumper all game... Trap him? He'll split the defenders or get out of it with his handles and create a 5 on 3 for us... There is literally nothing you can do to stop Kyrie, you just have to hope he's having an off game with his jumper. Kyrie is so versatile and special, one of the best pure/efficient scorers in the game today.

Wait, is the argument who is the better offensive threat or who is the better point guard? Wall averages like 10 APG...but isn't even in the same stratosphere as Kyrie in terms of scoring.