Kyrie Irving was on top of the NBA world when he hit the iconic dagger in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. Since then, it’s been a struggle for the Dallas Mavericks guard to recreate that postseason magic.
Irving has just 11 total playoff wins in the six seasons since parting ways with LeBron James back in 2017. The 31-year-old has only two playoff series wins after 2017. That does not include the Boston Celtics’ Eastern Conference Finals run in 2018, which Irving had to watch from the sidelines due to injury.
Irving’s lack of playoff success without James was the subject of a tweet that did not sit well with the Mavs guard. The tweet listed the complete timeline of how each of Irving’s seasons ended since 2018.
Kyrie Irving hasn't had much success since leaving LeBron James 😳 pic.twitter.com/2s1lCwFMMz
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) July 31, 2023
The 8-time All-Star responded a day later.
“Pin this tweet and see what happens in the next few years,” Irving said.
Pin this tweet and see what happens in the next few years.
Hélà
🤞🏾♾🪶— Kyrie🤞🏾 (@KyrieIrving) August 1, 2023
The “next few years” will likely be Irving’s best chance to be a featured star on a title-contending team. While there are exceptions, small guards who rely on agility do not typically age very well once they are on the wrong side of 30.
Kyrie may no longer be playing with LeBron, but he does have another MVP-caliber co-star in Luka Doncic. The Mavs tandem will need to learn to co-exist if they ever want to replicate the success Irving once had with James.
Irving signed a 3-year, $126 million contract to stay with the Mavs this offseason. The Mavs also included two notable incentives for Irving to hit, each worth a million dollars.
H/T Bleacher Report
