A Closer Look at Kyrie Irving

[cavsfanclanman]

Perhaps Wall would have been taken before Irving, but it would have been based on speed/hops/reach, not talent or NCAA performance.

Personally, I don't want the next Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose, or John Wall as our PG ... it would be LeISO all over again, but just shifted to a different position on the court. It's telling that Dx nails Wall's upside as Westbrook, and Irving's as Deron. I'd prefer the later. Deron wouldn't struggle to share the ball with Kevin Durant.

The fact Kyrie chose Duke just means he's smart AND skilled. How many of those Dukie busts were top players in the nation coming out of HS? They sure didn't wreck Grant Hill, and if his season at Duke helped Kyrie avoid becoming a me-me player - all the better.

Not to mention, where's Roses, Brons, westbrooks and Walls rings?

 

[Adam]

If wall and irving are 1/2 in the draft the workout would be a thing to watch, seeing them battle each other for the number 1 spot

 

[CavsFaninNJ]

Not to mention, where's Roses, Brons, westbrooks and Walls rings?

LOL

a little early to say that about 3 of those 4, don't ya think?

 

[chrisrich91]

LOL

a little early to say that about 3 of those 4, don't ya think?

Especially considering Deron and Paul don't have rings either.

 

[InBoobieWeTrust]

Westbrook WITH BETTER COURT VISION. Wall is a pure point guard, rather than SG turned PG like Westbrook, he just has his athletic ability, if not even better.

I don't think Wall's a pure point guard. Calipari fooled everyone on that train because he let Wall control his dribble drive offense. He may have better court vision, but that doesn't make anyone a pure point guard. LeBron might have the best court vision in the NBA but everything he lacks is everything a pure point guard brings to the table.

 

[CzBoobie]

I don't think Wall's a pure point guard. Calipari fooled everyone on that train because he let Wall control his dribble drive offense. He may have better court vision, but that doesn't make anyone a pure point guard. LeBron might have the best court vision in the NBA but everything he lacks is everything a pure point guard brings to the table.

Well, that's what DraftExpress Jon was mentioning says (said) about him actually, not me. Best case: Westbrook with better court vision and one of his strengths: pure point guard.

He averaged more than two more assists than Irving in college, he averaged 8.3 assists as a rookie and people call him a volume scorer? Why?

 

[InBoobieWeTrust]

Well, that's what DraftExpress Jon was mentioning says (said) about him actually, not me. Best case: Westbrook with better court vision and one of his strengths: pure point guard.

He averaged more than two more assists than Irving in college, he averaged 8.3 assists as a rookie and people call him a volume scorer? Why?

I don't think he's a chucker or volume scorer, but I think as a distributor he uses his speed off the dribble to create openings and then kick to shooters or other open players. He's very read and react oriented. Again, similar to LeBron in that regard. An excellent passer, great vision, ability to draw an extra defender...but in terms of being a floor general and controlling the pace and flow of a game which is what the true greats like Kidd, Paul, Stockton, etc do, Wall lacks in those areas and those are the areas I consider to be important traits of a "pure point guard". Sure he threw up a bunch of assists at Kentucky where they cleared out and he blew past a bunch of guards and then dumped off for a dunk or kicked for a corner 3, but one of the reasons they were so anemic when they lost in the tournament is because they had no control over the pace of the game and the Calipari style offense(also known as Le-Iso to us Clevelanders) isn't that hard to crack.

 

[Rist77]

I think John Wall will be the better player, not by much though. But Kyrie will be the player that helps out his team more.

 

[Jon]

My hope is Kyrie lets us build a better team - one that shares the ball.

The Wizards already seem to be tailoring their re-build around Wall. They took 3 players in this draft who all have 3 or 4 years of NCAA/Euroball experience. They are all a couple years older than Wall. It sounds a lot like a team that's looking to re-build quick and is happy to find guys who will be able to play off of Wall.

They seem to be trying to build a team around Wall, rather than a team with Wall.

I hope we do the later, and if that means Kryie ends up with lower stats, that's fine by me.

 

[Alec]

I think some are underestimating how good Wall, Rose and maybe Westbrook will be.

Kyrie should wish he'll be as good at his peak as they are right now.

Did you just draw an illogical conclusion and pat yourself on the back for it?

Yes.

 

[Futuredome]

Wall is a SF in a PG's body.

 

[Tornicade]

Westbrook is one of those guys who can be either. He can be a Scorer or pure point guard. its whatever mentality he takes into the game. His assist percentage is increasing every year but so is his shots taken and his TS% as well. In the Offseason he worked rather hard on his three point shot and the improvement was evident throughout the season.

In the playoffs though his assist percentage dropped from the previous year and his 3 point attempts per game increased. This brought down his true shooting percentage.

westbrook is sometimes guilty of forcing or taking bad shots on occasion but overall he is a distributor who can score. If westbrook can continue to keep his assist percentage at 40% + in the playoffs. play better team defense and make less forced shots the team will be even harder to beat


Kyrie wont be so prone to take bad shots. He is accustomed to facillitating to the talent around him but he also wont be done on the play once he makes the move. Kyrie will have no problems resetting the offense and playing without the ball. Kyrie also is surrounded by finishers. Knock on the Cavs talent all you want you cant say with a straight face that they dont have a multitude of strong finishers. Despite all the talk about kyrie on the open floor. I think he will shine in the half court offense which was something the cavs were truly lacking for the most part of the season

Davis, Varejao, Gibson, Parker(if he ends up coming back), Gee, Erden all Half court players with Davis, Varejao, Gibson the only Crunch time defense breakers as the shot clock draws near.

Im hoping Thompson is a half court offense kind of guy as well but Irving will definately be a guy who can find the right guy or get the ball to the basket when the shot clock is dwindling.

I think samuels and eyenga will grow into this role as well.

 

[Jon]

I think some are underestimating how good Wall, Rose and maybe Westbrook will be.

After 7 years of watching the premiere ISO player in the league do his thing, most of us just aren't so impressed by guys who play that way.

We want a PG who runs the offense, not a PG who is the offense.

 

[Jon]

Westbrook is one of those guys who can be either. He can be a Scorer or pure point guard. its whatever mentality he takes into the game.

A "pure point guard" doesn't struggle with mentality, because knowing how to approach a game and when his team needs him to be a scorer, a shooter, a leader, a passer, etc, is part and parcel to the role. When the other guys on the court are struggling, they know what to do to get them going - that's just basic leadership and game management.

Westbrook's biggest crime is an offense against efficiency. Whether in the playoffs, or even the regular season, Westbrook is at the bottom of the Thunder in both TS% and eFG% while dominating USG%.

He should be going in to the game with one thing in mind: "How can I get Kevin Durant good looks?" ... and short of that setting up someone other than himself.

The fact he just can't handle this is evident every time the Thunder's offense would pick up when Harden or Maynor would enter the game.

He should improve over time, but players with that shooting guard mentality always seem to have a hard time balancing scoring .vs. play making. A player like Steve Nash is such a treat to watch because you know he could get his own shot up any time he wanted, but instead he's always looking to set up his teammates. And of course, he's always at or near the top on the Suns in shooting efficiency (TS%/eFG%).

 

[Lee]

After 7 years of watching the premiere ISO player in the league do his thing, most of us just aren't so impressed by guys who play that way.

We want a PG who runs the offense, not a PG who is the offense.

Just because we are mad at Lebron, there is nothing wrong with top level iso players, ie Jordan or Kobe, they did ok, ofcourse Phil had alot to do with both of their success.

That said, I prefer a prettier form of basketball. A Magic Johnson or Jason Kidd style pg who controls the pace of the game and less standing around on offense. But ISO style has won championships, so has true pg style. More than one way to skin a cat.