Kyrie Irving

[KI4MVP]

I suppose if the team believes they can play Kyrie 45 minutes a night and LBJ 42 minutes a night and go one on one all game, it could be an effective strategy, that is until one of them gets hurt or keels over from exhaustion.

Guys like Kevin Love, Mike Miller, Shaun Marion and even AV need teammates to set them up and pass them the ball and get them into the flow of the game.

The ISO stuff later in the game when you need a bucket and can just out-talent your man is one thing, but all game long?

the players you listed were a combined 6-24. They were getting passes, they either weren't making their shots. Love got to the line 11 times, so there were another 6 missed shots in there.

I certainly would like to see more assists, but there are times when the superstars need to put the team on their back and score. Kyrie and LeBron were both effective at that last night.

The three things that killed us last night were

- our first half defense
- our rebounding (this team should never be out rebounded by 11)
- the missed goal tending call that resulted in a 4 point swing and killed our momentum for a while.

Kyrie only took 3 shots in the first quarter, he took 9 in the 4th. If he doesn't take over in the 4th, we lose by 15 points.

 

[Lee]

Kyrie said there's nothing wrong with 0 assists

There is also nothing right with it either.

 

[OptimusPrime]

If Blatt isn't going to fix Kyrie then we are just wasting our time. LeBron has the clout to go get the ball from him, but no one else can. And if the ball isn't going to move this team is not winning anything.

 

[Brandname]

the players you listed were a combined 6-24. They were getting passes, they either weren't making their shots. Love got to the line 11 times, so there were another 6 missed shots in there.

I certainly would like to see more assists, but there are times when the superstars need to put the team on their back and score. Kyrie and LeBron were both effective at that last night.

The three things that killed us last night were

- our first half defense
- our rebounding (this team should never be out rebounded by 11)
- the missed goal tending call that resulted in a 4 point swing and killed our momentum for a while.

Kyrie only took 3 shots in the first quarter, he took 9 in the 4th. If he doesn't take over in the 4th, we lose by 15 points.

This doesn't line up with what I observed during the game. Those guys got shots, but they weren't open shots. They were forced to create for themselves because the offense wasn't flowing.

I think it's a bit shortsighted to say that they got their shots and didn't make them, so Kyrie had to take over. Although I might think that if I looked at the box score (not that I believe this is the basis for your judgment), during the game it was clear that they weren't getting the ball in a position to succeed.

Part of that is on them (they need to at least try to move without the ball more, regardless of what Kyrie is doing). Much of it is on Kyrie, who did not seem to be looking to pass or run the offense at all. And the rest is on Blatt and Lebron. Blatt needs to figure out how to get the product on the court to match what he has in his head, and Lebron has to be more focused on both ends of the court.

 

[Bandwagoner305]

Blatt doesn't want to step on anyone's toes, but he's going to have to make a few changes. Right now, Kyrie is standing in the way of the kind of offense coach Blatt wants to run. I really don't expect him to do anything about it, but he should give Kyrie the green light to chucking the ball with the second unit, and let LeBron run the show in the first unit so that all the guys can get involved. Just let LeBron be the playmaker in the starting lineup, then Kyrie can do his thing when LeBron isn't on the court with him. That's the only solution that i can think of for now.

 

[Crosby_Cavs]

0 freaking assist... I don't know what to say.

 

[Bandwagoner305]

I can't guarantee that the Cavs would win a lot of games without Kyrie, but i can guarantee you that a lot of other guys would get involved more and be in position to shoot open shots if Kyrie were to miss a few games. LeBron would make sure of it with him being the primary playmaker. Kyrie is the black hole of the offense right now. Not LeBron, not Waiters, not Love. Kyrie is the chemistry killer.

 

[OptimusPrime]

Kyrie is the chemistry killer.

Some of us pointed that out last year too, but we were idiots because "if Kyrie didn't take every down stretch we would have lost by more". I am just wondering who they are going to blame after we dump Waiters.

 

[TitleTown]

Some of us pointed that out last year too, but we were idiots because "if Kyrie didn't take every down stretch we would have lost by more". I am just wondering who they are going to blame after we dump Waiters.

No one is blaming waiters for our losses. No one.

 

[OptimusPrime]

No one is blaming waiters for our losses. No one.

No, you blame him for the lack of chemistry. The chemistry looked great last night when he didn't play, didn't it? And last year the best chemistry the team had all year was when Kyrie was out injured late in the year.

 

[TitleTown]

No, you blame him for the lack of chemistry. The chemistry looked great last night when he didn't play, didn't it? And last year the best chemistry the team had all year was when Kyrie was out injured late in the year.

What are you talking about? I don't blame him for anything. I don't think Dion really matters on this team one way or another--he's the 4th wheel to one of the best Big3s in the league. If winning or losing depends on Dion, then we have way bigger problems.

 

[falcon2294]

Kyrie is part of the problem no question. But when ever he had the ball it seems like lebron wouldn't move. I think a major problem last night was there seemed to be no off ball movement

 

[DW3]

Kyrie is part of the problem no question. But when ever he had the ball it seems like lebron wouldn't move. I think a major problem last night was there seemed to be no off ball movement

Who's going to move when you know your PG is going to dribble around, and then, jack up a shot. It's no secret that teams with good ball movement have the main ball handlers whom are willingly passers. And, by a willingly passer, it's not just passing the ball, but it means you give up a good shot for an even better one. How often do you see Kyrie give up a shot let alone a good one.

 

[Bandwagoner305]

Kyrie is part of the problem no question. But when ever he had the ball it seems like lebron wouldn't move. I think a major problem last night was there seemed to be no off ball movement

No one wants to move without the ball thus far. No one is cutting to the basket, no one is moving to their sweet spots to get some good looks. Everyone just stand and watch when LeBron and Kyrie are pounding the ball.

Part of the reasons for LeBron's turnovers is because he's trying to direct some of his teammates to move to their sweet spots so that he can draw out the defenders and dish it out to them like he did in Miami and in his first stint with the Cavs, but on this team, no one is moving without ball and putting themselves in position to get the best quality shots as possible. Kyrie only knows how to make bailout passes when he loses control of his overdribbling and fancy street ball tactics, etc.

The sooner Blatt gives LeBron the thumbs up to run the offense and everyone can move without the ball instead of standing around, the quicker they'll get over this slow start. Right now, Kyrie is playing for himself, while the rest of the team are trying to figure out how to play together.

 

[mhi]

1. David Blatt tried to establish the Cavs’ food chain during Wednesday’s film session and team meeting. According to a source with knowledge of the meeting, Blatt essentially told the players that LeBron James and Kevin Love eat first and that it’s Kyrie Irving’s job as point guard to feed them. Irving can then find his own rhythm after the first two guys get going.

This quote and Irving's subsequent performance is a dead on case of insubordination. No question about it and you just can't have that in any functional organization.

So now what are they gonna do about it ? I say cut his minutes drastically because the FO and coaching staff have to take a hard stance. We gotta show the NBA and our own free agents (Lebron, and especially Love) that we are no longer the pushover org from Lebron's first years.

Unbelievable and unacceptable.