Kyrie Irving and the Tale of Two Playoff Runs

It's about that time in the NBA season where the best meet the best. The stage was set for the fifth seeded Dallas Mavericks to take on the first seeded Oklahoma City Thunder to determine who will be one of two teams left in the West. When put to the test, the Mavericks delivered and beat the Thunder in six games. Dallas did have a late scare in the second half of Game 6 when they were down by as many as 17, but they had just enough in the tank to overcome the deficit and win the game which inevitably won them the series.

With a collision course of the Mavericks potentially matching up with the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals underway, let's compare the tale of two playoff runs from Irving in 2022 on the Nets to now with Dallas.

In 2022, Boston swept Brooklyn in the first round after the Nets got through the play-in versus the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the series, Irving notably got things started by showing no love lost between him and Boston since stepping on the Celtics logo in the 2021 playoffs. The former Nets guard even had a controversial interaction with a Celtics fan mid-game on his way to dropping 39 points before losing in heartbreaking fashion courtesy of a Jayson Tatum game winner at the buzzer. For the series Irving totaled 21 points per game, five boards and 5 assists while shooting 44% from the field.

Considering the sour history between Irving and the Celtics, many believed the 2014 FIBA World Cup MVP would elevate his game accordingly considering what he did in Game 1 of that series. Instead, those who did believe that, were left outside waiting. It never happened.

Fast forward to 2024 for this year's playoffs, it's Irving's first time back in the playoffs since that 2022 embarrassment. So far so good for the Mavericks guard, he is handling the pressure well, even notably showing up big in Game 4 of the first round versus the Los Angeles Clippers when he erupted for 40 points. Being on the verge of playing in the Conference Finals once again almost seems ancient at this point for Irving, but's it's happening.

It has certainly been a tale of two playoffs runs for him. In a more refined system that diverts from solely taking turns isolating with the other best scorer on the team throughout the game on top of the plays ran which is what happened in Brooklyn, the Mavericks guard has found a better groove settling in for scoring during the second half of games. It's a pattern that is hard to not notice from Irving on this playoff run. As of right now he's averaging 21 points, five assists and four rebounds. Above all else, the system on the Mavericks is working in the postseason.

When the series with Oklahoma ended, the former Nets guard admitted in his postgame interview with ESPN's Malika Andrews that this was in fact the hardest series he ever had to go into.

"This is probably the hardest series I've ever had to go into and it felt like it," said Irving. "All the pain and all the sacrifices were worth it so when you get that vindication and you can close out the number one team in the Western Conference it feels good. I wouldn't be here without all the great teammates I had in my career ..."

Kyrie Irving, after Dallas advances to the Western Conference Finals: “I’m doing my best not to be so emotional right now because this is probably the hardest series I’ve ever had to go into... This is just our moment and I think it’s time we enjoy it.” pic.twitter.com/Xa0MkFL7t6
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) May 19, 2024

Although Irving is implying that this Thunder team is better than the 2022 Boston Celtics, it's very difficult to not point out the advantage that Celtics team has on this year's Thunder team on the boards. Nevertheless, the Celtics team of today that is waiting for who their opponent in the Eastern Conference Finals is going to be still has familiar personnel from that 2022 Celtics squad. If Irving manages to get to the Finals with Dallas and Boston is the team that meets him there, it will be quite the showdown, but all eyes will be on Irving because of the combination of his unresolved history with Celtics fans and what happened between the two sides in the 2022 playoffs.

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