Does Kyrie Irving on the Celtics pose a threat to the Warriors?
By Derek Tahara
The Boston Celtics have acquired Kyrie Irving. How much of a threat are they to the Golden State Warriors now?
The electric and dynamic talent of Kyrie Irving was traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Boston Celtics. His trade to the Celtics sent shockwaves across the NBA Twitterverse because he was traded to the Cavs’ rivals, the Celtics.
The Celtics are getting one of the top scoring point guards in the league, while the Cavs are receiving Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and the Nets 2018 first-round draft pick.
As Shams Charania tweeted out:
Celtics are sending Thomas, Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 first-round pick for Kyrie Irving, league sources tell The Vertical. https://t.co/gdaT9UjVGl
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 22, 2017
Let’s forget about Cleveland for a moment and focus on how Irving makes the Celtics one of the top teams in the league and most importantly, a possible threat to the Warriors’ throne.
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Irving is one of the most gifted offensive players in the league with a vast array of shots in his arsenal. He has a floater that he can shoot with either hand, a fadeaway and a knockdown three-point shot.
He averaged a career-high 25.2 points per game and 5.8 assists per game this past regular season per basketball-reference.com.
He has given the Warriors plenty of problems, especially in the Finals the past two years. In the past two NBA Finals, Irving has averaged 27.1 points per game in the 2016 Finals and 29.4 in this past season’s Finals. Irving was especially dynamite in this year’s Finals scoring a couple of 40-point games vs. the Warriors. It’s pretty clear that Irving likes to play against the Warriors. His dribble combinations and quick, slithering moves make it a tough assignment for Klay Thompson or Andre Iguodala to guard him.
One of, if not the biggest reason that Irving could help make the Celtics be a threat to the Warriors is their head coach Brad Stevens. Stevens is one of the best coaches in the NBA with schemes and different sets for every defense and offense.
If Stevens were to help make Irving move off the ball more off of cuts and curls, it would open up a plethora of opportunities for Irving to either score or pass to one of his teammates. Irving has proven time and again that he has the ability to squeeze through cracks in the defense and make plays.
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With Stevens’ ball-movement philosophy offense, it would help Irving gauge when he needs to attack and when he needs to set up his teammates and that is another scary combination for the Warriors. Additionally, Stevens is one of the better defensive-minded coaches in the league and if he gets Irving to really commit on the defensive end of the floor, the Warriors will have quite the problem on their hands.
With Irving’s ability to finish around the rim and the rest of his offensive repertoire and Brad Stevens’ coaching ability, he could help the Celtics be a legitimate threat to the Warriors throne.