NBA Finals: Comparing These Cavs to the ’07 Version

May 20, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) controls the ball against the Atlanta Hawks during the first quarter of game one of the Eastern Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Starting Point Guard

In ’07 Larry Hughes was starting at point guard due to any other better options. Eric Snow was limited and on his last legs. With Point LeBron also playing back then, no one else really had to handle the ball much. Hughes averaged 12.2 points during the season and 11.3 in the post season. He had 3.7 assists per game in the regular season but only 1.0 in the post season, showing how much LBJ shouldered the load.

With Kyrie Irving, LeBron has the best point guard he has ever played with on his team. Even hobbled, Irving is much better than Hughes in every way besides defense. Irving averaged 21.6 PPG and 18.7 while struggling through injuries in the post season. His assists are down from 5.2 to 3.7 in the post season but he is still providing LeBron help in creating the offense.

Advantage: Irving. Not only can Irving score better than Hughes but he is also a better distributor, creator and shooter than Larry. Hughes was a long active defender, the one area he is better than Irving. Besides that, just this advantage puts the ’15 Cavs in a much better position than the ’07 Cavs in the NBA Finals.

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