The Kyrie thread - he probably doesnt bleed green

[ddb]

So I'm at a point where I am fine with Kyrie staying or going. I trust Danny enough to surround Kyrie with the right pieces i.e. Anthony Davis, etc if Kyrie were to stay. If Kyrie leaves then I'm sorta intrigued by the possibilities moving forward, especially if Gordon Hayward comes back an All-Star again, which I think he will be.
This has clearly been a difficult year all-around. Kyrie really struggled as a leader and he never developed into the superstar that many of us thought he could be as the teams #1. He's proven that he's more of a #2 and needs a LeBron or KD in order to win the ultimate prize.
Hayward wasn't even close to being ready at the start of the season. And I think Hayward playing too early impacted the roster in a negative way. I fully believe that GH with a full off-season HEALTHY, will come back ready to regain All-Star form. Especially, if Kyrie is gone and Hayward's usage goes up.
The biggest disappointment on the entire roster was Terry Rozier. Clearly, he didn't want to be here as a backup. Clearly, he isn't suited to be a backup. He plays much better as a starter. Danny missed the boat last offseason and should have traded Rozier while his value was high.
Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown both struggled overall and failed to take the next big step in their development. but I don't blame those guys quite yet. I blame Kyrie and Brad for not handling these "kids" the right way. And I think this season has been humbling for Tatum & Brown. I feel like those guys will come back more hungry for success. Remember, when you experience success right away in your young career, you think that's just the way it's going to be all the time. You fail to realize that it takes a lot of heart and effort. It takes passion and some good fortune. so granted these 2 are still Celtics next season, I am excited to see what adjustments and development they will have made.

Guys who I was pleased with this year. Al Horford. He was very solid. Very steady.
Marcus Morris-A lot of people don't like Morris, but he did what he was asked to do. Played well.
Marcus Smart. Improved his shooting. Never complained or punches any picture frames.

Jaylen has improved after his rough start. IMO.

He sure has. Jaylen has been really good down the stretch and in the playoffs

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[Jaqua92]

The only support kyrie needs is from Danny Ainge and he has it. Ainge will offer him a 5 year max the second he can. If he signs then we try for AD. The roster is going to be completely different due to free agents and trades whether it’s AD or someone else.

Kyrie sucked in the buck series big time. He talked big and he failed to back it up- that being said the path to a ring is easier with him than without. He’s been a diva to the media all year and he lacks self awareness big time but I’d rather have him and AD or him with players that fit better with him than many of the alternatives I see being offered here.

I feel the same way. Here's how I see it, if Kyrie stays here, we are going to trade for Davis. If that's the case then he will put together a team that fits with Kyrie and Davis. like it or not, that's our best path to a title. And winning a championship is what's important above ALL else. As far Kyrie being a teamwrecker, the idea is that he would be fine with a team built around him.

Has Kyrie been annoying? yes. Has he been a scummy person? yes. A bad leader? Yes. Bad teammate? Yes. All of the above. but the thing is, I am totally over the series. I'm more looking forward to the opportunity of watching Milwaukee beat the Raptors and giving golden state of fight and I am game 5. But that said, I don't care how bad Kyrie's behavior is! It has nothing to do with me. He's not doing anything to me, I have no relationship with the guy. If getting AD and building around him and Kyrie is the easiest path to a title, I'm all for it. Sucks what he did to this team, but this team isn't winning.

That said, if he leaves, I won't care either. I feel lots of us are taking Kyries antics personally. It's irritating to see that, but can we win a championship any other way in the next 5 years?

No. So yeah, go all in on Kyrie and AD. Hope that keeps him happy.

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[Tiny ball]

The only support kyrie needs is from Danny Ainge and he has it. Ainge will offer him a 5 year max the second he can. If he signs then we try for AD. The roster is going to be completely different due to free agents and trades whether it’s AD or someone else.

Kyrie sucked in the buck series big time. He talked big and he failed to back it up- that being said the path to a ring is easier with him than without. He’s been a diva to the media all year and he lacks self awareness big time but I’d rather have him and AD or him with players that fit better with him than many of the alternatives I see being offered here.

I'm a draft develop guy like what they did in Golden State. AD is always injured as much as I hate Tatums game at least he stays on the floor. I like ball movement and a fast running game. Loved the Kings style this year.

I will keep watching till we turn into the Rockets. That is my fear we turn into the Rockets. I hate watching the Rockets. I hate watching Kyrie slowly dribble up the court then badly dribble, near lose the ball and then attack three giants.
If he could draw fouls like harden at least we would shoot free throws but he is to lame to even draw fouls.

[LuckyLeprechaun]

The only support kyrie needs is from Danny Ainge and he has it. Ainge will offer him a 5 year max the second he can. If he signs then we try for AD. The roster is going to be completely different due to free agents and trades whether it’s AD or someone else.

Kyrie sucked in the buck series big time. He talked big and he failed to back it up- that being said the path to a ring is easier with him than without. He’s been a diva to the media all year and he lacks self awareness big time but I’d rather have him and AD or him with players that fit better with him than many of the alternatives I see being offered here.

I feel the same way. Here's how I see it, if Kyrie stays here, we are going to trade for Davis. If that's the case then he will put together a team that fits with Kyrie and Davis. like it or not, that's our best path to a title. And winning a championship is what's important above ALL else. As far Kyrie being a teamwrecker, the idea is that he would be fine with a team built around him.

Has Kyrie been annoying? yes. Has he been a scummy person? yes. A bad leader? Yes. Bad teammate? Yes. All of the above. but the thing is, I am totally over the series. I'm more looking forward to the opportunity of watching Milwaukee beat the Raptors and giving golden state of fight and I am game 5. But that said, I don't care how bad Kyrie's behavior is! It has nothing to do with me. He's not doing anything to me, I have no relationship with the guy. If getting AD and building around him and Kyrie is the easiest path to a title, I'm all for it. Sucks what he did to this team, but this team isn't winning.

That said, if he leaves, I won't care either. I feel lots of us are taking Kyries antics personally. It's irritating to see that, but can we win a championship any other way in the next 5 years?

No. So yeah, go all in on Kyrie and AD. Hope that keeps him happy.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

A lot can change in 5 years. 5 years ago Giannis was still considered a raw project and the rest of the Bucks roster was trash. 5 years ago Kawhi was a Spur and the Raptors were chokers. 5 years ago 76ers weren't sure if Embiid would ever play and they didn't have anyone else currently on the roster. 5 years ago Chris Paul was a Clipper and Houston was a go no where team. Only contending team that should have felt comfortable 5 years into the future was GS and if they didn't get Durant, they probably wouldn't have won as many titles as they did.

Getting AD and keeping Kyrie doesn't even make us clear favorites to begin with. Danny is going to have to work his magic and make some of the brilliant under the radar moves he's made in the past if he's going to get us there again.

[wco81]

If the Celts give up too much for AD, then I don't know that AD and Kyrie would be enough. Holiday isn't the shotmaker/creator that KI is but he's a great defensive player and the Pels with those two were at best a second-round team.

[ILC]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

[soxfan2003]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

We will learn more in game 5 but right now it does appear Kyrie may need a star player with strong personality or a coach with a real strong personality to keep him in line. Horford and even pre-injury Hayward are not really strong personalities.

Morris/Horford/Brown are all shooting really high percentages vs the Bucks. It may be a little random noise but those 3 players outside of a few bad shots by Brown are all taking good shots for the most part. They have taken what the defense have given them and what their teammates including Kyrie have facilitated for them. Outside of a few Brown drives, they are not taking high degree of difficulty shots. Some of this is probably by the design of Milwaukee defense but gotta credit those 3 players for having a good series on the offensive end.

The players that are struggling and shooting a decent amount are Irving and Tatum. Both have TS% below 50% for the series. For all of his struggles shooting from the field since game 1, Hayward despite limited shot opportunities and getting clearly hacked on a few shots that he has missed, still has a TS% marginally above 50% for the series.

Irving can still have a lot of value to the Celtics but if he tries to play superman/Uncle Drew against a team like the Bucks, he will not succeed at a high enough level for Celtics to get by the Bucks. Irving is a great shot maker and great scoring around the rim but Bucks interior defense is simply better.

I like Stevens as a coach but with this particular team, Bill Bellichek may do a better job coaching with very little experience and just a few months to figure out basketball/the NBA. I am not joking or exaggerating with this one.

BB may not know basketball that well but he recognizes sometimes one of your best options isn't good enough to contribute in the usual ways against the strength of the opposition. You could have an all pro left tackle with a huge ego but he still may not be capable of blocking Lawrence Taylor well enough 1 on 1 so you adjust and do something different like chip Lawrence Taylor. BB I believe would be using Irving more as a decoy/passer and as a floor stretcher until Milwaukee let up its defense against him. What is my evidence? He did that with Gronk in a playoff game vs I believe the LA Chargers. The Patriots weren't even trying to throw the ball to Gronk and just had him blocking 90% of the time. Why? Afair one of the Chargers best defenders matched up well with an older Gronk.

The Bucks making Kyrie look human on his drives to the basket isn't the fault of Kyrie in the sense he should be blamed for that. Celtics shouldn't have relied upon it so much when they knew before the series how well Bucks could protect the paint. When C's lost that close game to the Bucks during regular season, they forced Kyrie with the chips on the line to take an awfully difficult shot. Give the Bucks interior D credit but then just attack them where they are weaker.

Kyrie is 100% right that the Bucks are overloading the defense against him. But he has to adapt until Bucks change their game plan.

[CeltsfaninDC]

So I'm at a point where I am fine with Kyrie staying or going. I trust Danny enough to surround Kyrie with the right pieces i.e. Anthony Davis, etc if Kyrie were to stay. If Kyrie leaves then I'm sorta intrigued by the possibilities moving forward, especially if Gordon Hayward comes back an All-Star again, which I think he will be.
This has clearly been a difficult year all-around. Kyrie really struggled as a leader and he never developed into the superstar that many of us thought he could be as the teams #1. He's proven that he's more of a #2 and needs a LeBron or KD in order to win the ultimate prize.
Hayward wasn't even close to being ready at the start of the season. And I think Hayward playing too early impacted the roster in a negative way. I fully believe that GH with a full off-season HEALTHY, will come back ready to regain All-Star form. Especially, if Kyrie is gone and Hayward's usage goes up.
The biggest disappointment on the entire roster was Terry Rozier. Clearly, he didn't want to be here as a backup. Clearly, he isn't suited to be a backup. He plays much better as a starter. Danny missed the boat last offseason and should have traded Rozier while his value was high.
Jayson Tatum & Jaylen Brown both struggled overall and failed to take the next big step in their development. but I don't blame those guys quite yet. I blame Kyrie and Brad for not handling these "kids" the right way. And I think this season has been humbling for Tatum & Brown. I feel like those guys will come back more hungry for success. Remember, when you experience success right away in your young career, you think that's just the way it's going to be all the time. You fail to realize that it takes a lot of heart and effort. It takes passion and some good fortune. so granted these 2 are still Celtics next season, I am excited to see what adjustments and development they will have made.

Guys who I was pleased with this year. Al Horford. He was very solid. Very steady.
Marcus Morris-A lot of people don't like Morris, but he did what he was asked to do. Played well.
Marcus Smart. Improved his shooting. Never complained or punches any picture frames.

1) Hayward being GIVEN the starting job was a really bad look for this team especially for the kids. You can get down on Jaylen all you want for his pouting, but the look of Brad handing over a starting job to his former player who he had a close relationship with was a really decision and caused a lot of dissension. Very bad tactical error by Brad and probably DA.

2) I could not agree with you more about Terry. I was a huge advocate of his and he has disappointed me with his play this year and especially in the Playoffs. If he tries to steal one more rebound from his own teammates I’m going to scream. He almost took someone out last night trying to pad his stats with rebounds. His shot selection sucks, he’s not getting others involved and his defense is not close to what it was last year. Usually when a player is in a contract year they put in the performance off a lifetime. He has been a huge disappointment

[cloverleaf]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

We will learn more in game 5 but right now it does appear Kyrie may need a star player with strong personality or a coach with a real strong personality to keep him in line. Horford and even pre-injury Hayward are not really strong personalities.

Morris/Horford/Brown are all shooting really high percentages vs the Bucks. It may be a little random noise but those 3 players outside of a few bad shots by Brown are all taking good shots for the most part. They have taken what the defense have given them and what their teammates including Kyrie have facilitated for them. Outside of a few Brown drives, they are not taking high degree of difficulty shots. Some of this is probably by the design of Milwaukee defense but gotta credit those 3 players for having a good series on the offensive end.

The players that are struggling and shooting a decent amount are Irving and Tatum. Both have TS% below 50% for the series. For all of his struggles shooting from the field since game 1, Hayward despite limited shot opportunities and getting clearly hacked on a few shots that he has missed, still has a TS% marginally above 50% for the series.

Irving can still have a lot of value to the Celtics but if he tries to play superman/Uncle Drew against a team like the Bucks, he will not succeed at a high enough level for Celtics to get by the Bucks. Irving is a great shot maker and great scoring around the rim but Bucks interior defense is simply better.

I like Stevens as a coach but with this particular team, Bill Bellichek may do a better job coaching with very little experience and just a few months to figure out basketball/the NBA. I am not joking or exaggerating with this one.

BB may not know basketball that well but he recognizes sometimes one of your best options isn't good enough to contribute in the usual ways against the strength of the opposition. You could have an all pro left tackle with a huge ego but he still may not be capable of blocking Lawrence Taylor well enough 1 on 1 so you adjust and do something different like chip Lawrence Taylor. BB I believe would be using Irving more as a decoy/passer and as a floor stretcher until Milwaukee let up its defense against him. What is my evidence? He did that with Gronk in a playoff game vs I believe the LA Chargers. The Patriots weren't even trying to throw the ball to Gronk and just had him blocking 90% of the time. Why? Afair one of the Chargers best defenders matched up well with an older Gronk.

The Bucks making Kyrie look human on his drives to the basket isn't the fault of Kyrie in the sense he should be blamed for that. Celtics shouldn't have relied upon it so much when they knew before the series how well Bucks could protect the paint. When C's lost that close game to the Bucks during regular season, they forced Kyrie with the chips on the line to take an awfully difficult shot. Give the Bucks interior D credit but then just attack them where they are weaker.

Kyrie is 100% right that the Bucks are overloading the defense against him. But he has to adapt until Bucks change their game plan.

Belichick is GOAT and Stevens is a lamb.

[cloverleaf]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

We will learn more in game 5 but right now it does appear Kyrie may need a star player with strong personality or a coach with a real strong personality to keep him in line. Horford and even pre-injury Hayward are not really strong personalities.

Morris/Horford/Brown are all shooting really high percentages vs the Bucks. It may be a little random noise but those 3 players outside of a few bad shots by Brown are all taking good shots for the most part. They have taken what the defense have given them and what their teammates including Kyrie have facilitated for them. Outside of a few Brown drives, they are not taking high degree of difficulty shots. Some of this is probably by the design of Milwaukee defense but gotta credit those 3 players for having a good series on the offensive end.

The players that are struggling and shooting a decent amount are Irving and Tatum. Both have TS% below 50% for the series. For all of his struggles shooting from the field since game 1, Hayward despite limited shot opportunities and getting clearly hacked on a few shots that he has missed, still has a TS% marginally above 50% for the series.

Irving can still have a lot of value to the Celtics but if he tries to play superman/Uncle Drew against a team like the Bucks, he will not succeed at a high enough level for Celtics to get by the Bucks. Irving is a great shot maker and great scoring around the rim but Bucks interior defense is simply better.

I like Stevens as a coach but with this particular team, Bill Bellichek may do a better job coaching with very little experience and just a few months to figure out basketball/the NBA. I am not joking or exaggerating with this one.

BB may not know basketball that well but he recognizes sometimes one of your best options isn't good enough to contribute in the usual ways against the strength of the opposition. You could have an all pro left tackle with a huge ego but he still may not be capable of blocking Lawrence Taylor well enough 1 on 1 so you adjust and do something different like chip Lawrence Taylor. BB I believe would be using Irving more as a decoy/passer and as a floor stretcher until Milwaukee let up its defense against him. What is my evidence? He did that with Gronk in a playoff game vs I believe the LA Chargers. The Patriots weren't even trying to throw the ball to Gronk and just had him blocking 90% of the time. Why? Afair one of the Chargers best defenders matched up well with an older Gronk.

The Bucks making Kyrie look human on his drives to the basket isn't the fault of Kyrie in the sense he should be blamed for that. Celtics shouldn't have relied upon it so much when they knew before the series how well Bucks could protect the paint. When C's lost that close game to the Bucks during regular season, they forced Kyrie with the chips on the line to take an awfully difficult shot. Give the Bucks interior D credit but then just attack them where they are weaker.

Kyrie is 100% right that the Bucks are overloading the defense against him. But he has to adapt until Bucks change their game plan.

Belichick is the GOAT and Stevens is a lamb.

I think the C's need to guide Stevens to strengthen his crew of assistants next year. He's pretty much got junior guys without NBA-level player or significant other NBA coaching experience. Since Adams didn't stay, Brad has really stayed away from the more experienced assistants. (Not that Larranaga isn't probably good, but he's not at that senior level.) They could probably use a tough, smart guy like Thibs. Maybe more an offensive guy, however.

[BRUNiNHO91]

If the Celts give up too much for AD, then I don't know that AD and Kyrie would be enough. Holiday isn't the 0shotmaker/creator that KI is but he's a great defensive player and the Pels with those two were at best a second-round team.

It would be Kyrie, AD, Hayward who should be better next year, Horford and one of Brown or Smart. If that's not enough then we greatly overrated Davis, Horford and Kyrie.

[jmr07019]

The only support kyrie needs is from Danny Ainge and he has it. Ainge will offer him a 5 year max the second he can. If he signs then we try for AD. The roster is going to be completely different due to free agents and trades whether it’s AD or someone else.

Kyrie sucked in the buck series big time. He talked big and he failed to back it up- that being said the path to a ring is easier with him than without. He’s been a diva to the media all year and he lacks self awareness big time but I’d rather have him and AD or him with players that fit better with him than many of the alternatives I see being offered here.

I feel the same way. Here's how I see it, if Kyrie stays here, we are going to trade for Davis. If that's the case then he will put together a team that fits with Kyrie and Davis. like it or not, that's our best path to a title. And winning a championship is what's important above ALL else. As far Kyrie being a teamwrecker, the idea is that he would be fine with a team built around him.

Has Kyrie been annoying? yes. Has he been a scummy person? yes. A bad leader? Yes. Bad teammate? Yes. All of the above. but the thing is, I am totally over the series. I'm more looking forward to the opportunity of watching Milwaukee beat the Raptors and giving golden state of fight and I am game 5. But that said, I don't care how bad Kyrie's behavior is! It has nothing to do with me. He's not doing anything to me, I have no relationship with the guy. If getting AD and building around him and Kyrie is the easiest path to a title, I'm all for it. Sucks what he did to this team, but this team isn't winning.

That said, if he leaves, I won't care either. I feel lots of us are taking Kyries antics personally. It's irritating to see that, but can we win a championship any other way in the next 5 years?

No. So yeah, go all in on Kyrie and AD. Hope that keeps him happy.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

Giannis is a FA in 2021 and if we land him we could absolutely win a title the following year. KI leaving would be a set back but not the end of the world. He's an allstar not an MVP candidate.

[jmr07019]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

We will learn more in game 5 but right now it does appear Kyrie may need a star player with strong personality or a coach with a real strong personality to keep him in line. Horford and even pre-injury Hayward are not really strong personalities.

Morris/Horford/Brown are all shooting really high percentages vs the Bucks. It may be a little random noise but those 3 players outside of a few bad shots by Brown are all taking good shots for the most part. They have taken what the defense have given them and what their teammates including Kyrie have facilitated for them. Outside of a few Brown drives, they are not taking high degree of difficulty shots. Some of this is probably by the design of Milwaukee defense but gotta credit those 3 players for having a good series on the offensive end.

The players that are struggling and shooting a decent amount are Irving and Tatum. Both have TS% below 50% for the series. For all of his struggles shooting from the field since game 1, Hayward despite limited shot opportunities and getting clearly hacked on a few shots that he has missed, still has a TS% marginally above 50% for the series.

Irving can still have a lot of value to the Celtics but if he tries to play superman/Uncle Drew against a team like the Bucks, he will not succeed at a high enough level for Celtics to get by the Bucks. Irving is a great shot maker and great scoring around the rim but Bucks interior defense is simply better.

I like Stevens as a coach but with this particular team, Bill Bellichek may do a better job coaching with very little experience and just a few months to figure out basketball/the NBA. I am not joking or exaggerating with this one.

BB may not know basketball that well but he recognizes sometimes one of your best options isn't good enough to contribute in the usual ways against the strength of the opposition. You could have an all pro left tackle with a huge ego but he still may not be capable of blocking Lawrence Taylor well enough 1 on 1 so you adjust and do something different like chip Lawrence Taylor. BB I believe would be using Irving more as a decoy/passer and as a floor stretcher until Milwaukee let up its defense against him. What is my evidence? He did that with Gronk in a playoff game vs I believe the LA Chargers. The Patriots weren't even trying to throw the ball to Gronk and just had him blocking 90% of the time. Why? Afair one of the Chargers best defenders matched up well with an older Gronk.

The Bucks making Kyrie look human on his drives to the basket isn't the fault of Kyrie in the sense he should be blamed for that. Celtics shouldn't have relied upon it so much when they knew before the series how well Bucks could protect the paint. When C's lost that close game to the Bucks during regular season, they forced Kyrie with the chips on the line to take an awfully difficult shot. Give the Bucks interior D credit but then just attack them where they are weaker.

Kyrie is 100% right that the Bucks are overloading the defense against him. But he has to adapt until Bucks change their game plan.

Belichick is the GOAT and Stevens is a lamb.

I think the C's need to guide Stevens to strengthen his crew of assistants next year. He's pretty much got junior guys without NBA-level player or significant other NBA coaching experience. Since Adams didn't stay, Brad has really stayed away from the more experienced assistants. (Not that Larranaga isn't probably good, but he's not at that senior level.) They could probably use a tough, smart guy like Thibs. Maybe more an offensive guy, however.

Belichick never would have put up with Irving's constant bull crap this season and that alone would be an improvement over Stevens.

[soxfan2003]

It won't be enough. AD is not an alpha by nature, he needs someone to push him and fire him up. An enabler like Kyrie and the type of 'leadership' he showed this year will only make things worse.

I feel quite comfortable and confident in saying Celtics would be better with AD and play hard guys than Kyrie, AD and whatever is left.

We will learn more in game 5 but right now it does appear Kyrie may need a star player with strong personality or a coach with a real strong personality to keep him in line. Horford and even pre-injury Hayward are not really strong personalities.

Morris/Horford/Brown are all shooting really high percentages vs the Bucks. It may be a little random noise but those 3 players outside of a few bad shots by Brown are all taking good shots for the most part. They have taken what the defense have given them and what their teammates including Kyrie have facilitated for them. Outside of a few Brown drives, they are not taking high degree of difficulty shots. Some of this is probably by the design of Milwaukee defense but gotta credit those 3 players for having a good series on the offensive end.

The players that are struggling and shooting a decent amount are Irving and Tatum. Both have TS% below 50% for the series. For all of his struggles shooting from the field since game 1, Hayward despite limited shot opportunities and getting clearly hacked on a few shots that he has missed, still has a TS% marginally above 50% for the series.

Irving can still have a lot of value to the Celtics but if he tries to play superman/Uncle Drew against a team like the Bucks, he will not succeed at a high enough level for Celtics to get by the Bucks. Irving is a great shot maker and great scoring around the rim but Bucks interior defense is simply better.

I like Stevens as a coach but with this particular team, Bill Bellichek may do a better job coaching with very little experience and just a few months to figure out basketball/the NBA. I am not joking or exaggerating with this one.

BB may not know basketball that well but he recognizes sometimes one of your best options isn't good enough to contribute in the usual ways against the strength of the opposition. You could have an all pro left tackle with a huge ego but he still may not be capable of blocking Lawrence Taylor well enough 1 on 1 so you adjust and do something different like chip Lawrence Taylor. BB I believe would be using Irving more as a decoy/passer and as a floor stretcher until Milwaukee let up its defense against him. What is my evidence? He did that with Gronk in a playoff game vs I believe the LA Chargers. The Patriots weren't even trying to throw the ball to Gronk and just had him blocking 90% of the time. Why? Afair one of the Chargers best defenders matched up well with an older Gronk.

The Bucks making Kyrie look human on his drives to the basket isn't the fault of Kyrie in the sense he should be blamed for that. Celtics shouldn't have relied upon it so much when they knew before the series how well Bucks could protect the paint. When C's lost that close game to the Bucks during regular season, they forced Kyrie with the chips on the line to take an awfully difficult shot. Give the Bucks interior D credit but then just attack them where they are weaker.

Kyrie is 100% right that the Bucks are overloading the defense against him. But he has to adapt until Bucks change their game plan.

Belichick is the GOAT and Stevens is a lamb.

To be fair to Stevens, basketball in the NBA has been a star driven league. It may take someone of BB stature to just start benching guys when they make selfish or stupid plays. Popovich is like that but if he started off coaching a team like Phoenix, nobody would remember him. Rings gave coaches like Popovich and Jackson stature that Stevens just does not have right now. Very few NBA coaches ever have it for a lot of different reasons including fully guaranteed salaries and the NBA being more about superstars and stars.

I think behind the scenes at least, Stevens needs to work on Kyrie.

Stevens benched an ineffective IT when IT was injured but I am sure the Celtics knew then that IT was not the long term answer. It is tough to bench Kyrie when you want to sign him as a FA.

But end of the day, Kyrie has to try hard on defense like game 1 and some regular season games like against the Warriors and not be so concerned with trying to score 30 points or prove that he can score against a tough Bucks defense. If Celtics win with Horford scoring 40 or Brown scoring 50 that is great.

Goal needs to just be on trying to win the game.

[31to6]

Yes to the above. Kyrie gets LBJ on him ISO! fails we lose
Kyrie gets Giannis on him HERE WE GO! fails ditto
suck my dick indeed

[The_Ghost_of_JB]

Some of you guys have some interesting takes on Irving. Despite his flaws he is a top 15 player. Yeah he hasn't played well this series but then again not many players have. He leadership isn't great but neither was Pierce's and he turned into a solid leader.

He walks he takes his cap space with him and the Celtics cannot sign another star free agent. With no Irving this is a 500 team at best and it sets the team back years.

[Celts17Pride]

With no Irving this is a 500 team at best and it sets the team back years.

What happened in the playoffs last year without Kyrie?

Celtics were something like 14-2 in games Kyrie didn't play in this year.

This is a tired old statement that just isn't true. Kyrie leaving is an addition by subtraction.

[Egregiousness]

I knew this couldnt have been brad who left Kyrie alone on Giannis so often yesterday

Read on Twitter

can we please get rid of this narcissist with delusions of grandeur

[chrisab123]

I knew this couldnt have been brad who left Kyrie alone on Giannis so often yesterday

Read on Twitter

can we please get rid of this narcissist with delusions of grandeur

Yeah kehd!

We don't need him. We have Scary Terry who is begging for a chance bro. This dude isnt a true celtic. Not like Mahcus Smaht. He plays wicked hard. Hell with these narcissistic divas. Am I right?!! Not a true Celtic by any means. Let him go to the Lakers or Knicks. We'll be fine with Scary Terry and heart and soul Marcus.

[chrisab123]

With no Irving this is a 500 team at best and it sets the team back years.

What happened in the playoffs last year without Kyrie?

Celtics were something like 14-2 in games Kyrie didn't play in this year.

This is a tired old statement that just isn't true. Kyrie leaving is an addition by subtraction.

Does lightning in a bottle mean anything to you? There's no way in hell they start out 17-2 next year without Kyrie. The East is also much better than a year ago. Without multiple stars this team is probably at the Pacers level or slightly below.