By james art Wednesday night saw a rematch of the Western Conference Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Dallas had the last laugh in the 2024 NBA playoffs and had the same score in their 120-114 victory. Luka Doncic made a 40-foot dagger for a three-pointer to seal the game with a minute left.
However, Kyrie Irving’s name flew under the radar amid all the hype. Despite being recognized as one of the best guards in the league, ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins believes he is on the same level as the Minnesota All-Star.
Perkins took to ESPN’s “NBA Today” to make an extremely heated point about Irving. Anthony Edwards captured the hearts of fans and basketball professionals around the world with his performance in the 2023-24 season. Perkins claims Irving wasn’t far off. he said
“Let me remind you that last year Kyrie Irving his numbers were identical to those of Anthony Edwards. That means he was playing at an All-NBA level.
A takeover of the 14-year NBA veteran isn’t far off. Edwards earned a spot on the All-NBA Second Team. He finished with 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. Irving wasn’t far behind, averaging 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game.
Irving played just 58 games on the season, seven games shy of the NBA’s mandatory 65-game threshold for individual awards. Perkins went on to point to Kyrie’s stellar play as the reason why the backcourt of Doncic and Irving is one of the greatest in NBA history.
Perkins presented the title “the most skilled backcourt ever” for Doncic and Irving. Their performance against the Timberwolves backed up his position. Kyrie was the top scorer for Dallas with 35 points. The 6-foot guard stepped up amid Luca’s struggles from the field.
Although Doncic only shot 37% from the field, he still finished with 24 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. He finished it off with the clinching shot to seal the victory.
Comparison between Irving and Edwards
Comparing Perkins to Edwards and Irving isn’t as crazy as it sounds. The two players are not all that different statistically. The real difference is how these players’ advanced numbers affect their clubs’ performance. With a net rating of +8.9 in the 2023–24 season, Irving was in the league’s 89th percentile.
Edwards surprisingly hosted a +3.8 net rating in the 2023-24 season. That mark carved it into the 73rd percentile.
Defensively, Edwards excels. In the 2023-24 season, opposing teams scored 7.2 fewer points with Ant on the court. Irving also had a positive impact, but not as much as Edwards. Opposing teams scored 2.5 fewer points with Irving on the court.
The statistics show that Perkins’ comments were valid. The 2024-25 season could turn out to be completely different and cut Edwards out of that discussion. However, until that happens, the stats show that Irving and Edwards were on the same level of players this past season.