RealGM

Going in a different direction here, should the Cavs consider trading Kyrie?

My thoughts are as follows: (1) His defense is so bad against good PGs that it really just starts a cascade of rotations that destroys the entire team's defense. Obviously K. Love and Kyrie are bad in the PNR but it's not like the team's defense got better with Love out and Kyrie in. There's also nowhere to hide Kyrie against the Warriors. Against the Spurs you can put him on Danny Green who can't dribble. But you can't hide Kyrie on Klay Thompson. LBJ never rotated off his man on defense last night. I have to believe that it was deliberate.

(2) Kyrie is now five years into the league and he's still playing hero ball, he still over dribbles, he still doesn't get post players ball in a timely manner, and he rarely runs a system offense. I don't think it's a coincidence that K. Love's regression happened at the same time Kyrie came back. We aren't beating GS, and we probably aren't beating San Antonio, playing hero ball. Those teams are just too good defensively to make their jobs easier. I don't know if this kid is ever going to "get it" but I'm not sure how long the Cavs can continue to wait.

This is ludicrous. Trading away Kyrie would be trading away any title hopes.

You're stripping LeBron of being accountable for the team's offensive struggles and placing it on Kyrie. Kyrie is not the one dictating the pace of the game and holding the ball for the majority of the shot clock. Anyone who supports LeBron iso fests is a LeBron fan first and a Cavs fan second and that's what I'm seeing from you.

Kyrie hero ball is still more often than not efficient offense. He's one of the best scorers in the NBA and he's not heavy on turnovers and he's improving as a passer. This is an awful idea. You're forgetting just how good and how integral a part Kyrie was in our success last season. He moved the ball and he scored 22 PPG on 58 ts%. How at all you can act like he's a problem is so mind boggling to me. He's played 13 games since shattering his knee cap and you want to trade our 2nd best player, and prop up Love who has been a shell of his Minnesota self.

Love has been bad since before Kyrie came back. Early December he fell off hard.

ThirdEyeSharp wrote:This is ludicrous. Trading away Kyrie would be trading away any title hopes.

You're stripping LeBron of being accountable for the team's offensive struggles and placing it on Kyrie. Kyrie is not the one dictating the pace of the game and holding the ball for the majority of the shot clock. Anyone who supports LeBron iso fests is a LeBron fan first and a Cavs fan second and that's what I'm seeing from you.

Kyrie hero ball is still more often than not efficient offense. He's one of the best scorers in the NBA and he's not heavy on turnovers and he's improving as a passer. This is an awful idea. You're forgetting just how good and how integral a part Kyrie was in our success last season. He moved the ball and he scored 22 PPG on 58 ts%. How at all you can act like he's a problem is so mind boggling to me. He's played 13 games since shattering his knee cap and you want to trade our 2nd best player, and prop up Love who has been a shell of his Minnesota self.

Love has been bad since before Kyrie came back. Early December he fell off hard.

I'm not forgetting I'm remembering. What playoffs series was Kyrie integral to last year? Because that's all that matters with the current team.

1. Had LeBron not taken a terrible fade away 3 with game 1 tied on the last possession and we actually run a play for Kyrie (or run a play in general for anyone, that holding for OT crap in game 1 lost us the series) who is a proven knockdown shooter and clutch player he may not have gotten injured. He had a game saving block, 5 steals, and outperformed Curry in game 1 before OT. Do you remember that?

2. Dude shot 45% from 3 with tendinitis in his knees and the spacing he provided against Chicago was huge.

3. What has Love done for us in the playoffs, or the regular season, to warrant your opinion on keeping him over Kyrie? I'm not some reactionary person saying we need to trade either guy, but I'd love to hear what you have to say given the parameters you've given me to judge Kyrie. Love consistently shoots a lower percentage than Kyrie despite being 6'10" and having both Kyrie and LeBron produce open looks for him.

ThirdEyeSharp wrote:1. Had LeBron not taken a terrible fade away 3 with game 1 tied on the last possession and we actually run a play for Kyrie (or run a play in general for anyone, that holding for OT crap in game 1 lost us the series) who is a proven knockdown shooter and clutch player he may not have gotten injured. He had a game saving block, 5 steals, and outperformed Curry in game 1 before OT. Do you remember that?

2. Dude shot 45% from 3 with tendinitis in his knees and the spacing he provided against Chicago was huge.

3. What has Love done for us in the playoffs, or the regular season, to warrant your opinion on keeping him over Kyrie? I'm not some reactionary person saying we need to trade either guy, but I'd love to hear what you have to say given the parameters you've given me to judge Kyrie. Love consistently shoots a lower percentage than Kyrie despite being 6'10" and having both Kyrie and LeBron produce open looks for him.

To me it comes down to two things - I don't think Kyrie is ever going to play system basketball. The ball is always going to stick. LBJ can mitigate against that by being a point forward some but that's what you're going to have to do. I don't think Kyrie is capable of guarding good PGs and his team defense hasn't improved over the course of 5 years. Now if last night was a wake up call, fine. But I've seen Eddie Haskell say all the right things in interviews too many times to take it on faith that he's on the verge of getting it.

As good as Kyrie and LBJ are, neither are good enough to beat elite defensive teams playing hero ball. If last night wasn't proof of that, I don't know what will be.

As far as open looks for Love, the only open looks Love gets are at the three point line where he really shouldn't be planted for 80% of the game. When he posts, Kyrie almost never gets him the ball in a timely fashion because he's too busy dribbling.

You're just avidly against Kyrie. Just last year we were a great team with great ball movement and spacing. You think Kyries first 13 games back is more telling than all of last season's sample size.

The ball is sticking in LeBron's hands more than anyone's , the comment is weird. When we were 33-9 to close the season last year we were the best defensive team in the league with Kyrie and Love playing extensive minutes.

Their only chance of winning a title is with a healthy kyrie. Trading kyrie eliminates all title hopes.
He isn't 100% yet. This wasn't the 1st game where he struggled. Was pretty awful against 76ers and wolves too.

lambchop wrote:Their only chance of winning a title is with a healthy kyrie. Trading kyrie eliminates all title hopes.
He isn't 100% yet. This wasn't the 1st game where he struggled. Was pretty awful against 76ers and wolves too.

Yeah I don't get that. We were 0-1 with Kyrie playing really well on offense and 2-3 without him playing at all. I don't get the Obe One Kanobe thing with Kyrie.

I don't want to make any panic trades until the summer if necessary. Let's see what we have come playoff team with this roster and Blatt, because we haven't gotten the chance to see them together with everyone healthy in the postseason. Last game hurt my soul, but I'm willing to refrain from hitting the panic button until after a potential Finals series.

yoyoboy wrote:I don't want to make any panic trades until the summer if necessary. Let's see what we have come playoff team with this roster and Blatt, because we haven't gotten the chance to see them together with everyone healthy in the postseason. Last game hurt my soul, but I'm willing to refrain from hitting the panic button until after a potential Finals series.

Yeah I'm there with you but Kyrie is going to have to sacrifice some stats for that to happen or pad them in garbage time.

Both Kyrie and Love are in year 1 of 5 year extensions. They are 27 and 23 respectively. Can't trade either of them.

We are gonna be alright and Kyrie is going to prove you wrong.

kyrie irving

Kyrie. The hero ball worked last night, it was needed and he came through. I hope it doesn't become a default. If you remember the late 90's Indians, Kenny Lofton would hit a home run, and then for a week or so after that he thought he was Albert Belle, but he would instead hit 280 ft. fly ball outs until someone got into him to stop.
We need Kyrie to be able to take over to beat either GS or SA, but he needs to know when not to be in hero mode as well. So far he has been good about not going hero when it is not needed. The truly great players figured out how to flip the switch and when to flip the switch. Last night was a good sign that maybe Kyrie is figuring that out.

game winning shot!

He should've been named Finals MVP.

syrus3 wrote:He should've been named Finals MVP.

Kyrie is top 5 point guard in league and only 24 why the hell would CAVS trade him..

Love on the other hand is traded this off-season for depth or high end role player ..

Props to Uncle Drew. He is the newest internet sensation here in the PH.

Kyrie is here for the length of his contract... after that if he doesn't learn to play defense, the player that you replace him with, better be worth replacing him with....

omg funniest OP ever