Kyrie Stats Are Down But Leadership is Up

3) Team Concept:

• You have to give Kyrie Irving credit he is definitely buying into the team concept which makes you wonder why he wanted to leave the Cavs in the first place. Irving was expected to come to the Celtics and average more shot attempts than last year but he isn’t. He is averaging two less shots per game than he did then and allowing other teammates to shine.

2) Assists:

• Irving has never been a top-notch facilitator in his career but so far he is at least maintaining the five assists he had last year. Now this number should improve over time since now he has the ball more in his hands. This is certainly an area of weakness for the star, but the Celtics are currently number one in the Eastern Conference so it isn’t a big deal as of now. Whatever Irving is doing to get his teammates going, it is evidently working.

1) Leadership:

• Kyrie Irving is the best player on the Celtics but he is wisely not forcing it on the offensive end. He is averaging a modest 21 ppg and allowing his teammates to thrive. The Celtics have four other players averaging at least 13 ppg, a luxury that most teams don’t have. Irving has been good not to disrupt the chemistry by being selfish, he is being a leader first--scorer second.