This is a statistic, certainly anecdotal, but quite crazy: Kyrie Irving had never lost a match in his career that allowed his team to qualify for the next round. This is what we call a “close-out game”, a match to complete the series. Before Game 4 last night, Irving had 14 wins in 14 series!
But the good series ended last night with the victory of the Wolves, and Irving takes responsibility for it. “I started the match by losing a few balls, and if I set an example like that, the others will follow me… It's my fault. I had to start the meeting much better” he explained at a press conference.
Passive and embarrassed by Jaden McDaniels
Author of 16 points on 6 of 18 shots, Irving lost four balls, and throughout the meeting, he seemed to wait until the 4th quarter to strike. It's as if he was saving himself for money time, and he was often a spectator when Luka Doncic had the ball in his hands, and he played like a shooting guard, not a creator.
Faced with the big arms of Jaden McDaniels, he didn't try to provoke things. This wasn't the usual Kyrie. “He had a huge impact,” recognizes the All-Star leader. “He’s 2m06 tall, he’s a winger, and it’s the first time I found myself facing him. But I love this kind of challenge, and I will adapt. This isn't the first time I've found myself facing a defender much taller than me, but I don't want to make it one-on-one between me and Jaden. It's up to me to be smart and be able to create 'mismatches'”
