How Much Do Cleveland Cavaliers Miss Kyrie Irving?
The Cleveland Cavaliers lead the Eastern Conference with a 9-3 record, the offense is clicking and Mo Williams is playing his best ball since the last time he donned the wine and gold.
So, just how much do the Cavs really miss Kyrie Irving?
The 23-year-old, three-time All-Star is drawing ever closer to his return from a knee injury suffered during Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Although not yet ready for game activity, Irving has recently been taking part in pregame shootaround and has been cleared for intensive weight-bearing activities.
Cleveland doesn't appear to be in any rush to bring him back, however. Williams and Matthew Dellavedova have more than held their own at point guard, and this is a team playing for June, not November.
Yet, despite that sparkling record and a top-ranked offense, the Cavs are simply a better team with their former Rookie of the Year on the floor.
The Cavaliers haven't missed Irving yet, but they certainly will.
Offensive, Defensive Differences without Irving
Noticeable improvements on defense last season notwithstanding, Irving's main contribution will always stem from scoring the basketball.
He's a lifetime 21.0 point-per-game scorer who shot a team-best 41.5 percent from deep in 2014-15. One-on-one, Irving is a load to handle, given his impressive ball-handling and ability to contort his 6'3" frame while finishing at the rim. He set the Cavaliers' single-game scoring record with 57 points against the San Antonio Spurs last season.
So, it was understandably expected that the Cavs may sputter out of the gate without him, especially on the offensive end.
Here's how last year's version compares with the Irving-less Cavaliers this season:
By most accounts, there doesn't appear to be too great of a difference.
The Cavs were ranked eighth in points per game and third in offensive rating in 2014-15. Now, they've only marginally dipped to ninth and fifth, respectively.
Sans Irving, Cleveland is hurt the most from behind the three-point line. While posting the best accuracy numbers from deep, he may also have the purest shot on the team.
While it may not be a fair inference, there's also no hiding the fact that the Cavs have been far better defensively from a season ago, even without Iman Shumpert as well.
For all of his improved focus on the other end of the floor, Cleveland was still a better defensive team when Irving sat last season.
After allowing 98.7 points a night (13th in the NBA) in 2014-15, the Cavaliers have limited opponents to 96.4 (fifth overall) this year. Their defensive rating has improved from 106.3 (18th) to 100.4 (ninth) as well.
Losing Irving has certainly impacted the overall offense, but a defensive jump without him has offset Cleveland in its strong start.
The Replacements
After losing Irving in the Finals, it was shockingly clear what little playmaking the Cavaliers possessed on their bench.
Enter an old friend.
Williams came back to Cleveland on a two-year deal, one he affectionately announced via Twitter:
"I'm coming home!!!!! #cavsnation #cityilove #questforaring
— Mo Williams (@mowilliams) July 7, 2015"
LeBron James' main sidekick from 2008-10, Williams is now 32 years old with 12-plus seasons of experience under his belt.
Williams truly was the perfect signing and fit for the Cavs. Given his age, he's not a player to build around at the point guard position, but remains a very good spot starter. Like Irving, Williams is perfectly happy playing both on and off the ball, able to orchestrate an offense or spot up behind the three-point line.
Through his first 11 games, all starts, Williams averaged 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.8 made three-pointers per game. His player efficiency rating of 18.4 is the highest of his career; Cleveland is also scoring 9.5 more points per 100 possessions with him on the floor.
He's very aware that this starting gig will be short-lived and was quick to praise the overall depth of the team.
"We're very deep. I think our bench, including myself, I'm kind of a part of that in a way when Kyrie comes back," Williams said. "We've got some good players. Players who have started games and could start games and play at a high level."
Despite ranking as the team's third-leading scorer, no one expected Williams to completely fill Irving's offensive shoes, including Williams himself.
"This team has a lot of weapons," Williams noted. "We don't want to put too much pressure on one guy's shoulders."
While Williams has helped ease the scoring void, the solid play of Dellavedova has really kept the entire position afloat.
A defensive menace, Dellavedova is also contributing a career-high 6.9 points, 2.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 0.8 steals in 25.9 minutes off the bench. He has an impressive distributor with a 3.6 assist-to-turnover ratio (fifth in the NBA), collecting a personal-best 13 dimes in Thursday's 115-100 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Even when Irving returns, Dellavedova should get minutes off the bench. He brings a nice change of pace to the backcourt as well as a gritty, defense-first attitude. While 26 minutes a night may be a tad too much for Delly over the course of a season given his limited offensive skill set, he's fine with heavy playing time in spurts.
When Irving Returns
Irving's reappearance will only make Cleveland deeper and more dangerous.
It will allow head coach David Blatt more flexibility in his backcourt, mixing and matching players based on what the opponent is throwing out.
It also means one of the NBA's top five offensive teams will add one of the league's most dangerous and exciting players.
That is, if Irving keeps the same style.
On media day in September, Irving made an interesting statement about how all of the injuries he's endured in his short career will now impact his style of play.
Irving said, per Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group:
"I'm not trying to change or remaster what I'm doing with my game, but in terms of going in there (the paint) every single time, nah, I don't necessarily need to. I'm just trying to avoid certain things like the body contact all of the time. I don't need to go in there every time, but I'm not going to forget what makes me who I am, and that's finishing around the rim.
"
Irving's aggressiveness in getting to the basket will certainly be tested. It won't be unusual to see him work from the outside in, attempting more three-pointers and pull-up jumpers while working his knee back to game strength.
Of course, everything circles back to LeBron James at some point as well.
Cleveland's soon-to-be 31-year-old leader is scoring at a 27.3 point-per-game clip in his 36.3 minutes a night. For this team to go deep into June, both numbers are too high.
Irving has proved he can take over games, something no other Cavalier besides James can do. His ability to run the offense and create shots for himself and others should equal a few extra minutes of rest for James every night, valuable time that will add up as the months roll on.
While the Cavaliers haven't desperately missed Irving to this point, it's highly unlikely they could win a championship without him.
Greg Swartz has covered the Cleveland Cavaliers and NBA for Bleacher Report since 2010. Follow him on Twitter, @CavsGregBR.
All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Stats via Basketball-Reference.com and are current as of Nov. 18.
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