Is Kyrie Irving ready to be a No. 1 on his own team?

With the talks about Kyrie Irving being traded getting hotter and hotter, we explore whether he’s an established superstar and ready for the spotlight that comes with being the guy

Kyrie Irving an NBA All-Star, there is no doubt about that. He is one of the 10 best point guards in the NBA and 50 best players. Where you rank him is subjective, but there are certain brackets he belongs in where he just isn’t as good as the Westbrooks, LeBrons, John Walls etc. That’s just a fact, and thinking otherwise is either bias or ignorant.

This past season, Kyrie Irving put up an impressive stat line as second fiddle on the Cleveland Cavaliers. He put up 25 points, six assists and three rebonds per game. The issue is that when you asked to be traded, especially as blatantly like Kyrie has done, now you put yourself under a tremendous microscope. The problem also comes with his asking price, and how it will be established.

Kyrie, as we already stated, is one of the best point guards and players in the NBA, but he is without a doubt more of a star off the court than on the court. Irving has some of the top selling shoes and one of the top selling jerseys, both ahead of players who are undoubtedly better than him.

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Market wise, he is probably top five in marketability in the NBA. He will probably sell more tickets than everyone but Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. But if he isn’t as good as some others ON the court, how do you trade for him properly?

Irving is no doubt going to bring you in more money as a player, no matter who you give up or if your team gets worse, but at what cost will you think it is fair to trade for him as a player? What is his value on the court compared to off the court and can he truly lead his own team?

In 17 games without LeBron since the spring of 2015, Kyrie and the Cavs are 4-13. That’s not good. Actually, that’s horrible. Even without LeBron, on paper, especially in the East, the Cavs should be good enough to squeeze a 6-8th seed. The games also weren’t close. Ten of the 13 losses were by double-digits, and some of them got really close to being by 20-plus.

That’s not a good track record for someone who wants to have his own spotlight in Irving.

Taking it a step further, Kyrie has never made the playoffs or gone over .500 without LeBron. I understand he was young, and he had a bad team, but Damian Lillard has never failed to make the playoffs or have a positive record in a much tougher Western Conference. Just some food for thought.

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Personally, I think Kyrie Irving isn’t ready for his own team, and he is viewed as a better player because of his off the court stardom rather than on the court. As far as trade value goes, once again it’s hard. From a business perspective, he is going to bring in LOADS of more revenue than any other player, but he might not bring in the wins needed.

As fans, we can only wait to see everything play out.

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