I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea of Kyrie Irving being traded to the Celtics when the rumors first started. But once it happened, I thought it could work out well if Kyrie’s game evolved.
Well, lo and behold… it has. Kyrie is playing better than I expected, and I broke down how for Boston.com
Past performance put serious doubts in my mind. Kyrie, historically, was very prone to dribbling the air out of the ball and playing too much isolation basketball. If you look at his shot chart from last year, you see what I saw: a ton of mid-range shots and slightly below average finishing at the rim (mostly because of how highly contested his rim attempts always were).
However, there’s a funny thing about athletes in their mid-20’s. A change of scenery, teammates, coaching, and overall infrastructure can have a profound impact on their results.
All of a sudden, Irving’s shot chart looks like this:
This is just the beginning. Head on over to Boston.com for a look at some key statistics and a couple of plays that really highlight how much better Kyrie is playing.
I have to give credit where credit is due… Kyrie has adjusted his play very nicely to fit more into what the Celtics are doing. I wasn’t sure what to expect but I didn’t expect this pleasant a surprise.
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