Brotherhood Playoff Watch: Will Kyrie Bounce Back After An Awful Game 1?

It’d be a big surprise if he plays that poorly again

Game 2 of the NBA Finals is Sunday night. Dallas had a tough Game 1 and part of that, obviously, is on Duke legend Kyrie Irving because Irving just wasn’t very good in Game 1. This is from CBS Sports and sums it up nicely:

“In Game 1, Irving had one-on-one shots thwarted by everyone from Al Horford to Sam Hauser. He dribbled off his foot against Derrick White. He passed a ball straight out of bounds. He missed wide-open 3s and a handful of pull-up jumpers that are usually automatic. Holiday made him airball one long, which fortunately turned into an accidental lob for Dereck Lively, which would qualify as the only one of those the Mavericks converted. Irving scored just four points after the 11-minute mark of the second quarter.”

The final score in Game 1 was 107-89 but here’s something you might have missed: while Boston outscored Dallas 37-20 in the first quarter, the rest of the way it was 70-69. And that’s with a subpar game from Irving, five fouls in 18 minutes from Dereck Lively and two starters in single digits.

Boston looked great, no doubt, but after that rough start, Dallas was quite competitive. It was just too much to overcome.

Sunday night could be much different.

By the way, here’s another interesting stat that you could look at one of two ways: apparently, Irving has lost 11 straight times to Boston.

Way #1: Boston just knows how to deal with Irving

Way #2: Irving is overdue for a win against Boston.

We’re not saying he’s going to get it here, but this seems reasonable: we’ll see a better Kyrie Irving on Sunday than we did on Thursday.

• 2024 NBA Finals: Kyrie Irving holds the keys to Game 2, and the Mavericks can’t survive another stinker
• Did Kyrie Irving say Jaylen Brown reminds him of Kobe Bryant?
• Adam Silver: Kyrie Irving took responsibility for documentary controversy
• “I don’t expect to be celebrated by everybody!”
• “I failed miserably” - Kyrie Irving gets real on his 2-year stint with the Boston Celtics
• Kyrie Irving Turns a Deaf Ear to Ex-ESPN Employee’s Stern Advice, Lays Emotions Bare Amid Boston’s Hostility
• “Try Not to Get FOMO”- Kyrie Irving Urges Ausar Thompson to Keep Grinding Behind the Scenes
• Dallas Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving Feels ‘Mutual Respect’ with Boston Celtics Fans
• Celtics’ Al Horford drops truth bomb about tumultuous past with Kyrie Irving