DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Cavs and NBA Playoffs Discussion

I'm curious people's opinion on something. Asking this on a Cleveland board may be a bit counterproductive, but I'll ask anyway.

I've got a buddy who recently told me he believes Klay Thompson is better than Kyrie Irving. That's not a common perception is it? I see Klay as a very good complimentary player - a legit #2 guy on a really good team. I see Kyrie as a legit star. My opinion is simply based on just watching the two of them play. This is no slight on Thompson at all. But my buddy really caught me off guard with his opinion, which he feels very strongly about. I'm just curious what other people's thoughts are.

We have a potential bet hanging out there that we haven't officially signed off on yet. I bet him if he asked 10 people with a working sports knowledge and a working knowledge of the NBA, at least 8 would say Irving is better than Thompson.

It's hard to say, because Irving is injury prone. They also play different positions, even if Irving occasionally moves over to the 2.

I'd take Irving, but it's close. Thompson's defense is on another level, but having a guy that can create his own shot (pretty much whenever he wants) is very valuable.

Sperg, no offense, but neither of those two things make it tough to say.

I'm surprised by yours and cfrs response actually. I thought this was pretty clear cut. Maybe my buddy is right after all.

But I know if I were starting a team, there's no way I would start it with Thompson. Curry makes Thompson tick. Thompson is the epitome of a great #2.

When both guys are at their best, I will take Irving. Better?

The trump card in the debate is Kyrie's ability to get to and finish at the rim. You can murder a team's will with that kinda stuff (especially with worrying about Lebron as well)

Kyrie hasn't done a lot of that in the playoffs, and I don't expect to see it much in this one, but if he can? The Cavs are winning this series. Kyrie getting to the rim plus Lebron, plus the overall defense and physical play? I'd take that all day over Golden State.

Like I said, I don't expect to see that Kyrie in this series. I still think he will have his moments though.

How did it work out with Kyrie being the #1 the last few years?

How would it work out if Thompson was #1 on GS?

It is a close call, and I hate Irving's injury history, but I think he is slightly better than Thompson.

Really dislike the board features.

Right, that's why I also said I would take Irving. Just pointing out that Irving probably wouldn't be able to carry a team for a whole season either.

Thompson just fits that team perfectly. Circumstance is nearly as important as talent.

Out of finals, Love says he'll be back next season with Cavs

Awesome vid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM8FCqArX3U

Man, I don't see how you guys can even debate this...one is a All-star this year, the other is 3xall star, including all star MVP, FIBA MVP, ROY, etc...Thompson is a nice player, but Kyrie is a much better player. But its hard because they play two different positions. But from a skill at their own position, kyrie is much better at his.

Well, that's it. He's going to Boston ......

Hope so, it will reinstall my trust in the pro athlete if he does.... just a little.

I'm still mentally fragile from 2010 when LeBron insisted he would be back all season but wasn't.

I don't remember Lebron insisting that he would be back that year.

I kind of remember him saying that it was a matter for the end of the season, or some such language ..... but not that he was definitely coming back.

I'm a bit baffled by this as well. I thought it was pretty clear cut. I guarantee 30 out of 30 GMs are starting their team with Irving over Thompson.

Which is what I, and everyone else, said.

You average about 4 words a post so it's not always clear what you say or mean. I think you like it that way.

But what I am surprised at is the answers weren't a little more emphatic in Irving's favor.

I think that fact that Irving was hurt, and that the team still played well without him plays against Irving just a little bit, especially while this is freshest in peoples' minds. I think this is the same thing with Love.

What is Irvings status?

Better, but still banged up.

I've heard people complaining a little that all this time off is getting Klay back to 100%, but we need every second of this time off the heal up Kyrie too.

The healthier Kyrie is, the more likely we can win. We need him to be big, badly.

That's how it was

Only half of this is true.

(That was six words. Do we include these words in my average?)

I will start a tally and provide weekly updates.

So should Golden State be investigated for failing to administer the concussion protocol? How does a guy get kicked in the head, go out of the game, bleeding from his ear, get put back in the game, then later he can't even drive himself home, he's dizzy and vomiting, then the following day diagnosed with a concussion?

Sounds like the Cleveland Browns concussion protocol ala Colt McCoy.

Of course I start my new 2nd shift job the week The Finals start...

Dang, that really sucks bro. I've pretty much told everyone I'm a ghost on Thursday evening and am not to be bothered "unless die hard emergency" lol. DVR is my suggestion, listening to bball games on the radio is confusing to me lol.

j/c:

The comparison between Kyrie and Thompson is pretty tough. If you just look at the stats, Kyrie has the advantage.

I think Kyrie is obviously a better ball handler and more creative. I think he is a better passer.

I think that Thompson is a much better defender and is a better shooter.

They are both #2's for their team. Curry is the main guy in GS and LeBron is the main guy for the Cavs.

I think what makes this race closer is that Kyrie seems soft to me. He is injured a lot. He is a huge liability as a perimeter defender.

I am not sure whom is the better player, but I think Golden State would miss Thompson more than the Cavs would miss Kyrie.

It's a good thing Brad McCoy doesn't have a kid on that team!

I am pretty jacked about this series. It's so nice to see a Cleveland team that is good and where people don't have to make crap up about how good they are.

The Cavs really are good.

Some thoughts:

--I like that we have the best player on the planet.

--I really worry about our perimeter defense especially if Kyrie plays big minutes.

--I like our advantage inside w/TT and Mozgov.

--I worry that GS really pushes the ball and scores a ton of points in transition. We might not have time to set-up our defense.

--That advantage for them can be compromised if we kill them on the offensive glass.

--Their ball movement scares me a bit. They really get a defense moving and I hate our perimeter defense. We can't just let these guys shoot like we did w/Chicago and Atlanta.

--I love the fact that we have so much flexibility w/LeBron. He can be playing the 4 and then all of a sudden, he can play the point, which allows guys like Smith and Schumpert to remain at their natural positions.

--I like Blatt in regards to devising a defensive scheme over Kerr.

--I worry that they have way more assists than we do.

--I don't think they have anyone who can stop LeBron if he decides to play in the paint. That means they will have to give a bunch of help inside and he will kick it out to our wide-open shooters.

--We haven't faced anyone in the playoffs that even comes close to the offense GS will produce.

--The Western Conference playoffs were a joke defensively. Teams were not even running back. Game 7 and the Clippers were jogging back? What?

Bottom Line: I don't know who will win, but I believe we have a good chance. I know GS is favored, but I think it is 50-50. I am really looking forward to this series.

I agree with most of what you said. The Blatt versus Kerr comparison, with regards to defensive gameplanning, is not correct. Ron Adams is on the Warriors staff. He is like the Dick LeBeau of the NBA. There are very few coaches who know more about defense than him.

The Warriors had the number one defense in the league the entire season.

Good argument and I know that GS had the number one defense during the season.

I went by my eyes. Blatt's defense in the playoffs was very effective. He and his assistants correctly identified team's strengths and vulnerabilities. That was evident when they decided to go under screens and dared Atlanta's guards to pull up for outside threes. That wasn't their game. Very smart.

Our problem is that GS has great outside shooters and we can't utilize that strategy in this series. I do think Blatt will come up w/something, though. He is way smarter than most give him credit for.

So only a couple days after firing Thibs, Chicago already has reached a deal with a new coach..

Well.. that was a quick "search"

What a crappy thing to do to a coach who was successful..

Everyone knew what was going on. Thibs was fired in January.

Surprised he came to the NBA. He was kind of like Tom Izzo, but in Ames, IA. 1M+ salary and a king. I'm sure he got a nice pay bump, and maybe he wanted to live in a big city and see how he can do in the NBA, but talk about a 100 fold stress increase.

Tyrone Lue is pretty respected on the defensive side as well.

I wonder if the fact that Gentry is leaving will have any impact on the Warriors, for good, bad, or indifferent. Also, coaches always say that the fact that they have taken another job will have no impact on their coaching, but who knows for sure? Do the players listen to him as closely, knowing that he will not be there after the playoffs end?

Right. Ron Adams is the guy for defensive strategy in the NBA.

This is an interesting series. The Warriors are a historically good team, but the Cavs have the best player. And the Cavs defense totally changed after the playoffs started.

I am not a fan of either team, but I am very excited for this series. Should be fun.

I actually feel Thibs is the best defensive mind in the NBA. His problem is that's all he lives and breathes is defense. He did phenomenal work in Chicago, Boston and New York.