One of NBA’s Best Perimeter Defenders Says Kyrie Irving Toughest Player to Defend by Far

Published by

Brad Sullivan

9 years ago

The stature of Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving has increased among teammates, opposing players and fans during each of his first six seasons in the NBA. In the opinion of one current player, he’s the toughest player to guard in the league.

That player is standout perimeter defender Avery Bradley, who was recently traded from the Boston Celtics to the Detroit Pistons. He was asked to choose by a fan on Thursday during an online question-and-answer session:

Bradley’s defensive skills are considered among the best in the NBA, which gives his words plenty of credibility. He’s faced Irving 25 times in his career and most recently came up on the short end against him and the Cavs during the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals. Irving scored an average of 25.8 points during the five-game series and connected on 62.2 percent of his shots.

Of course, Cavaliers fans need no reminder just how tough Irving is to defend. It was his 3-pointer in the final minute of Game 7 in the 2016 Finals that served as the winning basket, giving the Cavaliers the franchise’s first-ever-title.

Brad Sullivan

Brad Sullivan is a lead writer for Cavaliers Nation. He has spent much of life in the Cleveland, Ohio area, and has remained a Cavalier fan from their 1970 beginnings through the return of LeBron James. While that fandom was sorely tested during the Reign of Error known simply by one word, Stepien, that overall historical perspective will be part of his writing for Cavaliers Nation in the months ahead.