Zach Lowe on Kyrie Irving

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Stable franchises tamp down these kinds of ego conflicts. You have meetings, massage some personalities, tweak the playbook, win a bunch of games, and everyone feels better. You empower the aggrieved, make them feel included. David Griffin, the Cavs' deposed GM, did his best with Irving, James, and Love. Dan Gilbert's inexplicable decision to let Griffin go created a power vacuum at the wrong time.


Still: This is an audacious move from Irving. He led the team in scoring and shots last season. He held the ball longer than James, and touched it almost as often. He was much closer to LeBron in role than to Love. He is a glaring minus on defense, and the Cavs have been horrific when Irving has to play without James.

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But maybe adjustment becomes transformation, which becomes basketball magic. The Cavs have been terrible whenever Irving plays without LeBron. Irving's scoring in those minutes has soared anyway, in part because he never stops shooting. Over the past two seasons, Irving has jacked about 26 shots for every 36 minutes he plays without James, per NBA.com. Only six players have ever topped 25 field-goal attempts per 36 minutes in any season, and only one of them -- Wilt Chamberlain -- did it twice. Even Kobe Bryant never pulled it!


Meanwhile, Irving's assist numbers in those minutes barely ticked up.

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I am perhaps unnaturally intrigued with pairing Irving and Anthony Davis in New Orleans. Davis is almost the ideal co-pilot for a ball-dominant point guard. He's a pick-and-roll dance partner who can isolate and post up when Irving needs a respite, and use the threat of his jump shot to draw defenders out of the lane. He doesn't have the ballhandling to initiate possessions, but puts his mark on them every step of the way.

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