Since leaving LeBron James’ side in 2017, Kyrie Irving has been a menace everywhere else other than the hardwood.
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A few days back both Kyrie Irving and his Nets team were in a tough spot thinking about where to take that partnership of theirs which has almost never been off the headlines since the point guard brought his talents to Brooklyn alongside Kevin Durant.
As of today, they are all set for at least another year as there was no possible suitor for the duo in the market. Nobody could guarantee that things wouldn’t change tomorrow, next month, or in the mid-season but the Nets, as for now, are a contender once again for the 2023 Championship.
And to do things differently unlike the last couple of Playoffs, they must look at what has to change and to do that, they must go back to the 2017 Playoffs when Uncle Drew last played with The King.
Kyrie Irving has managed to put up just 22/5/5 in the playoffs since he last played with LeBron James
We know it’s a delight to watch Irving dance with the ball irrespective of what’s the result of the game. But KD must want results more than anything else, both from Kyrie and the Nets organization. That is how they’ll be able to keep the Slim Reaper beyond this season.
And looking at Irving’s last few postseason performances, it seems like he would find it difficult to play his best unless somebody like LeBron James is by his side. He averaged around 24p/5a/3r in 52 playoff games with a 39-13 record in Cavs uniform.
Thanks to NBA Reddit, we came across a post that touched upon his Playoffs numbers when he was playing for Cleveland were quite better than all his Playoff numbers with the Celtics and the Nets.
Those 2-3 point differential in the scoring average might be less but could’ve played a major role in the all the playoffs loss Nets have suffered in the last few years. Kyrie personally might believe that it was because of his injuries and the drama regarding vaccination but it must have been because the GOAT of this generation complemented him the best.
And irrespective of how good playmakers they have become in the playoffs, there is no way either Jayson Tatum or Durant could have done what James does in the postseason.
Also read: LeBron James’ mundane 12-hour practice for setting NBA records
LBJ averaged around 29 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 7.6 assists per game (52 Playoff games) with Kyrie by his side while Tatum averages under 2 assists and Durant under 3.5 in far lesser matches.
