Feb 24, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving (2) and Miami Heat small forward LeBron James (6) during the second half at the American Airlines Arena. MIami won 109-105. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
5: Lebron James and Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers)
These guys are at five for one reason: they haven’t played together yet. We just don’t know how they’ll mesh … will they even be successful?
Hah.
Of course they will–it’s Lebron James after all. I also put them in fourth place becuase I’m just not sure about Kyrie Irving. I want to like him and I want to see him become a top point guard in this league, but to date he’s had a few problems.
Centrally, his scoring has been inefficient — last season he ranked 4th in FGA but just 18th in FGM. He also shot at a rate of .480, good for just 16th among active point guards. Now, in Kyrie’s defense, his talent hasn’t been correctly utilized in Cleveland. The sheer volume of his field-goal attempts is staggering for a point guard and, quite frankly, may be a result of Cleveland’s lack of perennial talent.
I’m banking on Lebron changing all this. I’m banking on Kyrie and Lebron being akin to Lebron and Wade — in the championship years that is.