Back for a few months at the Nets now, Kyrie Irving can now play at home, ready to help his team as much as possible. He turns out to be a formidable asset in attack, and… that’s about it. In defense, the star looks more like a cannonball than anything else, as this stat confirms.
Although Ben Simmons is still not ready to make his debut with the Nets, the team has a full roster capable of causing mayhem in the Eastern Conference. Problem, this is not really the case now, and the return of Kevin Durant has not changed that. The star, however, was incredible on Saturday to face the Hawks, with a career highbut it is still a defeat after 48 minutes of play.
A crisis ? Maybe not for Brooklyn, but the record of 40-38 is not really dreaming, especially since Kyrie Irving can now play all matches. Offense isn’t much of a problem in the Big Apple, but defense is. Exactly, it is the case of Uncle Drew that interests us here.
Kyrie Irving, real problem at the Nets?
With 31 points on 32 shots against Atlanta, Irving didn’t have the best game of his career. If he is ineffective in attack, the contribution of the leader quickly becomes problematic for his team. StatMuse has just reported a damning statistic against him, and as much to tell you that it raises questions.
Nets with Kyrie this season:
119.3 offensive rating
118.3 defensive ratingBoth numbers would be the highest by any team since the NBA merger. pic.twitter.com/akx9NGOpnn
— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 3, 2022
The Nets with Kyrie this season: 119.3 offensive rating. 118.3 defensive rating. Both numbers would be the highest for a team since the NBA merger.
Yes, the Nets are a real machine when it comes to scoring. It won’t surprise anyone with KD and Irving around, or more recently with Seth Curry. Except that here, the higher the defensive rating, the worse it is. In this case, it means that Kyrie is a problem when it comes to defending, and not just a little.
Like this short video before the match, Kyrie remains an artist when it comes to handling the ball and scoring. But for defense? Let’s just say he’s a long way from competing for the Defender of the Year trophy. Steve Nash to find quick fixes:
This dribble drill from Kyrie is absurd ???? ????♂️
(via @BrooklynNets)pic.twitter.com/Xa8a4dyYF4
– SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 2, 2022
Kyrie Irving has no problem on offense, but defense is definitely another area where the point guard needs to improve to help his team. Otherwise, Steve Nash will have to think about putting defenders at his side, just to limit the breakage. To be continued.
