NBA: Ranking all 30 starting point guards for 2018-19

28 of 31

Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images /

4. Kyrie Irving, Boston Celtics

Kyrie Irving might never be classified as a “good” defender, but he was much better in that regard in 2017-18 and he can certainly afford to be only passable on the league’s top-ranked defense. With his biggest flaw taken care of by a plethora of versatile defenders, the Boston Celtics can sit back and enjoy with Irving does best: get buckets.

For those wondering if Terry Rozier had proven himself ready to take over the starting job for an injured Kyrie, who will be a free agent next summer, the Eastern Conference Finals made it abundantly clear that the Celtics could’ve used a proven, go-to scorer when they needed a basket the most.

That’s where the return of Kyrie (and Gordon Hayward) figures to help Boston in the upcoming season. If he can stay healthy this time, Irving has a good chance to not only improve on the 24.4 points, 5.1 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game on .491/.408/.889 shooting splits he posted last year, but do so for the undisputed kings of the East as well.