Kyrie Irving Will Never Be Considered A Top NBA Point Guard
Kyrie Irving is consistently debated on whether or not his skill set makes him an elite point guard. No matter how good, he’ll never be considered a top NBA point guard.
The curious case of Kyrie Irving continues to carry on in the basketball world. Recent debates have sparked on his status as a NBA point guard and where Irving currently ranks is determined differently by people. That, alone, means that where he ranks depends on who you talk to.
Irving is not a traditional point guard. He is never going to have high assist numbers because that’s not the way he plays. In fact, some could argue that he isn’t a point guard because of his playing style.
Truth be told, Irving is a point guard, but he’ll never be considered a top NBA point guard because his skill set is more of a shooting guard’s skill set. The links of Irving’s game to that of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant are striking. Of course, why wouldn’t they be? Irving is a lifelong Kobe fan and wants to be like him.
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Irving “tries to emulate” Bryant, which is reason enough to consider that Kyrie won’t rank among the top NBA point guards. At a time where Irving was reportedly unhappy in Cleveland, Bryant gave him the greatest endorsement as the Cleveland Cavaliers “lightning rod.”
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But what does all this mean? For players, ranking up against the top players of their time is important to one’s legacy. Irving’s may never be viewed as a top point guard because he models his game after Kobe Bryant, a shooting guard.
Allen Iverson is one of the greatest point guards of all-time, and he wasn’t a traditional point guard. Steve Francis is another very good, successful NBA point guard that wasn’t a traditional point guard. They both faced similar criticism to Irving because they weren’t the player that fans wanted them to be. Fans wanted point guards to be playmakers for others, not themselves.
What Changed? Irving is a score-first point guard in a league that now covets a scoring point guard. With the exception of Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul, the NBA’s most successful team’s are thriving with score-first point guards.
Irving had two elite performances in the NBA Finals against two-time, reigning MVP Stephen Curry. He scored 41 points against Curry in a win-or-go-home Game 5. He also hit the most iconic shot in Cavaliers history to deliver Cleveland it’s first major professional sports championship in 52 years. Yet Curry, not Irving, is still viewed as the better point guard.
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What Curry has done as the first option on a historic Golden State Warriors team is impressive. Irving has been equally impressive as the second option on the NBA Champions. With Kevin Durant heading to the Warriors, comparing the two players will become easier.
Another popular comparison for Irving is Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard. The numbers between the two players are so similar, yet Lillard is often considered the better point guard. Here’s a look at their statistical comparisons:
Kyrie Irving
| Season | Lg | G | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | eFG% | FT | FTA | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | NBA | 309 | 34.0 | 7.6 | 16.7 | .452 | 1.8 | 4.7 | .378 | .505 | 3.9 | 4.5 | .865 | 3.4 | 5.5 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 2.8 | 20.8 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 8/15/2016.
Damian Lillard
| Season | Lg | G | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | eFG% | FT | FTA | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | NBA | 321 | 36.5 | 7.2 | 16.9 | .426 | 2.6 | 7.0 | .370 | .503 | 4.4 | 5.0 | .870 | 3.8 | 6.3 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 2.8 | 21.4 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 8/15/2016.
Casual NBA fans will debate that Lillard is a better point guard because his assists per game is higher, that’s just how it works. Fans like to quantify things, and the point guard position has traditionally been about setting teammates up and being a playmaker. That’s why fans hold so much weight on assists.
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Irving has been vilified among the NBA world because he isn’t a pass-first player. Playing alongside LeBron James, he doesn’t have to be.
Going back to his time before James, Irving was a better passer. Though his assists per game numbers stayed relatively the same, his assist rate was 31.6 or better in the three years before James returned. His turnover rate started at 16.1 during his rookie season and shrunk to 12.1 in his final season before James returned. The skill set for Irving as a passer is there, but the opportunity is not.
It’s always going to be impossible to rate Irving, as The Ringer‘s Jason Concepcion suggests. His scorer’s mentality plays like a shooting guard, and if he wants to give in to popular perception and become a traditional point guard, it will be a waste of his talent.
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Kyrie Irving is never going to be viewed as a top point guard in the NBA, and it’s out of his control. He is a tremendous talent, and as long as he’s playing with LeBron James the perception of not being a top NBA point guard will continue.