Post#146 » by Trader_Joe » Mon Feb 3, 2014 2:56 am
The Cavs have no reason to trade Irving mainly because they are not going to get fair value and unless they get a top 4 pick aren't getting a player back with his potential, which is still certainly there.
At the same time I think it's important to look at why they would not get fair value
A. PG is a completely saturated position. While it might sound like a stretch to call Kyrie a slightly above average starting PG, it's not a stretch to call Deron Williams a below average PG and many thought that would have been blasphemous a year or two ago. Much of that is on D.Will but a large part is on the continued influx of PGs in the league. MCW, Burke this year, Exum and Smart coming up. This is the era of PGs in the NBA and yet PGs like Fisher, Chalmers, old as dirt Kidd, have rings as role players.
B. With the supply of PGs up and subsequently the demand low, the impact a PG has relative to his competitors is lower. Would a team rather have a player at a position they know offers a clear advantage over most their opponents or one that offers a marginal advantage?
C. Has Kyrie made his team or others around him better?
Since drafting Irving the Cavs remain a lotto team with roughly the same winning % despite having top picks to add to the team and the team trying to win. Theyve drafted Waiters, Thompson, Bennett, Zeller and Karasev. Of those I can't think of a single one who's shown growth and chemistry playing with Irving. Waiters fueds with him and Bennett has been one of the most disappointing #1s in recent memory.
D. Is Kyrie a scoring PG or passing PG?
He scores about 21 points over game but it is on 19+ shots per game. He has the ball plenty, yet only manages roughly 6 assists per game. His FG% and 3FG% has dropped every season to where he is shooting 43%/35%..down from 47/40 as a rookie. His rebounding has gone down as well.
E. He is going to expect a 5 year franchise max contract after next season.
Again with so many PGs with comparable production I would be hesitant to offer them that.
F. Defensively he needs to improve dramatically.
Opposing PGs out up a PER of 18.7 against him and the Cavs allow 7 less points per game when he is off the court and a much lower effective field goal percentage. His struggles on defense have long been documented and don't seem to be improving. If he is going to continue to be a score first PG I think he need to at least be like RW and Rose and elevate his D....significantly.
Overall I'm shocked by some of the offers being made for Irving. I don't think some GMs would actually make them, but at the same time I know Cleveland has too much riding on Irving to move on him so soon. No matter what he is still their most talented player by a long shot, though hopefully that changes after this draft.
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