Kyrie Irving was not selected for the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team this year, but one NBA star thinks that Irving is better than many of the greats at the point guard position who did make the cut.
Golden State Warriors veteran Andre Iguodala spoke this week with Sam Amick of The Athletic and revealed that the Brooklyn Nets star Irving is very high on his list of the greatest point guards of all-time. Iguodala has Irving fourth behind only Magic Johnson, Steph Curry, and Isiah Thomas.
“Magic, Steph, Isiah. [They’re] the only guys that I will allow you to say are better than Kyrie,” Iguodala said. “CP [Chris Paul], I’m not mad at, but I’ve got Kyrie. But people will argue that Kyrie hasn’t played enough games.”
When Amick mentioned Steve Nash specifically as a point guard who might be ahead of Irving, Iguodala argued that Nash is “not even nowhere close to Kyrie.” Iguodala added that he could argue that Chauncey Billups or Mark Price were better than Steve Nash.
Irving’s resume is as follows — he is a seven-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA selection, and an NBA champion. But it is hard to see how that puts him ahead of point guards such as all-time assists and steals leader John Stockton, Hall of Famer and triple-double machine Oscar Robertson, and even do-it-all floor general Jason Kidd. Additionally, players like Nash and Russell Westbrook were MVPs while players like Paul and Gary Payton were All-Defensive selections, neither of which Irving has ever accomplished.
Irving is definitely one of the more skilled offensive players ever, and even his current head coach Nash has sung his praises on the all-time scale. But compared to some of the greats who have played at the point guard position, it is difficult to convincingly argue that Irving is one of the top-four ever.
Photo: Feb 1, 2020; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving (11) during the second half against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
