Kyrie Irving: The Center Puzzle Piece

If you look them up, Kyrie Irving’s season stat averages aren’t that impressive. He appears to not have improved that much from last season when he was leading the Cleveland Cavaliers on his own while butting heads with Dion Waiters.

Here’s his season averages from last year compared to this one:

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2013-14: 20.8ppg, 3.6rpg, 6.1apg, 1.5spg, 43.0 FG%, 35.8 3FG%, 86.1 FT%, 35.2 minutes
2014-15: 21.4ppg, 3.2rpg, 5.1apg, 1.5spg, 46.4 FG%, 39.6 3FG%, 86.4 FT%, 37.0 minutes

A casual glance at this and, wouldn’t you know it, you get the reasons behind a lot of non-Cavaliers fans criticizing him for the praise he’s been given by those who truly understand the impact he’s had on the team.

To measure Irving’s worth and, yes, improvement, you have to look past the average stats as well as understand why they are the way they are.

First of all, the drop in assists is the most jarring thing to a lot of critics. “How can Irving possibly be a better point guard this season if his assists are down?!” Indeed, it doesn’t seem likely that Kyrie will average more than six assists per game in his career (though it is a bit early to say that) due to his scoring mentality.

Still, one has to remember that he is now playing with LeBron James, who just became the Cavaliers’ all-time assists leader after passing Mark Price in a game against the Mavericks. It was inevitable that Kyrie’s dimes were going to be limited by The King’s arrival. And yet, his numbers haven’t dropped right off.

Still managing to put up five a game combined with LeBron’s almost eight?

I’ll take that. And what about his other numbers?

For the same reason that it’s remarkable that Kyrie’s assists are only down slightly this year, it’s equally impressive that his other numbers have stayed relatively the same or have even gotten better. His scoring has gone up a tinge, his rebounds and steals are about the same and all of his shooting percentages have significantly moved upwards.

Even while playing on the best squad he’s ever been part of (by far), he’s still managing to do what he did for Cleveland in his first three seasons. Only now, he’s doing it beside guys who can help him win. And even when they’re taking lots of shots, he still gets his. But he’s become more efficient in this new system and with new comrades, and it shows.

Kyrie is taking the fewest shot attempts since his rookie season this year, and yet his true shooting percentage has shot up from 53.3 percent last season to 57.7 this season. Also, even with LeBron on his team soaking up the squad’s best PER, Irving’s is still slightly higher than the mark he hit last season and sits at a respectable 20.9.

Again, due to James’ presence, Kyrie’s usage percentage has also gone down this season to the lowest it’s ever been. Last season he was at 28.2 percent, and is only at 25.4 now. That just makes his efficiency that much more impressive.

Perhaps the most telling stat about his improvement comes in the form of win shares. He’s accounted for 8.3 total this season; that’s more than LeBron (8.0).

Across the board, Kyrie’s shooting has also spiked. The most striking points are the differences in his percentages from 16 feet to just before the three point line and from zero to three feet from the basket, as you can see:

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2013-14 Shooting: 57.6% (0-3), 37.1% (3-10), 44.0% (10-16), 38.9% (16+), 35.8% (3P)
2014-15 Shooting: 61.9% (0-3), 34.9% (3-10) , 41.3% (10-16), 48.2% (16+), 39.6% (3P)

A lot of times, Kyrie creates those two-point shots for himself. He doesn’t get or need assistance on those looks. He simply breaks down his defender off the dribble and then sticks it from wherever he likes; which apparently is 16-plus feet this season.

Irving has put every ounce of his effort into this Cavaliers run. He’s been a team player, easily surrendered the role of leader to LeBron, has been coachable, has improved his effort on defense and has even somehow managed to not only fit in with an entirely new club, but thrive and become a more efficient offensive player despite his already being gifted.

Say what you will about Kyrie Irving, but he was the star player waiting in Cleveland when everyone else showed up. He was the one who had to adjust to everything. And he has, fitting in with every single new addition brought aboard so perfectly that it’s been hardly noticeable.

Kyrie is the center puzzle piece of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

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