By Ronald N. Guy Jr.
The careers of Cleveland guard Kyrie Irving and Washington
guard John Wall will be forever linked.
Fair or unfair, that’s just how it is.
The points of intersection are too great; the comparison is too juicy to
ignore.
Both players attended blueblood institutions – Wall
chose Kentucky, Irving went to Duke – and left for the NBA after just one
season. Both were number one overall
picks in the NBA Draft - Wall (2010) and Irving (2011) - and have inked lucrative
contract extensions. Both players have
been four-time All-Stars. Both players
are among the best point guards in the world.
Oh…and both wear number 2.
Similar?
Yes. Identical? No.
The differences…
While Wall and Irving are both point guards, their
styles are unique. Wall is a traditional
point guard (a regrettably negative description in this great jump shot
era). He orchestrates offense through
masterful ball distribution. Wall can
score as required, but he thinks pass first.
His court vision is arguably the best; he inarguably makes his teammates
better (and a whole lot richer: see Bradley Beal and Otto Porter).
Irving has a little Allen Iverson in him. He’s a better pure shooter than Iverson, but
his offensive mentality is identical: score.
Pass? Well, sure…but only as necessary.
Wall’s and Irving’s impressive individual career statistics
illustrate this contrast. Wall’s
averaged 18.8 points and 9.2 assists per game; Irving’s countered with 21.6
points and 5.5 assists per game.
Pick your style.
Toe-may-toe; Toe-mah-toe. A
finely crafted IPA or a porter. The
Beatles or the Rolling Stones. Splendid
either way.
But there’s a non-basketball difference between these
two and it surfaced on the same day last week: Irving has a little drama in him…Wall
not so much.
In his first three seasons, Irving’s Cavs won 21, 24
and 33 games. In the last three,
Cleveland’s recorded 53, 57 and 51 wins, appeared in three NBA Finals and won a
NBA championship.
The change coincided with LeBron James’s return to Cleveland. Yet despite the success realized from the
James partnership, Irving requested that the Cavs trade him last week. Why? Irving
is fatigued by being Robin to James’s Batman and desires a new team where he
can play alpha-dog and receive the credit he feels he’s deserved. Never mind that James, at age 32, is likely
in decline and may leave Cleveland after this season – all things that would
offer Irving the leading role he covets…in Cleveland. And the timing – after the draft, after free
agency – was just awful. It drips of impulsiveness
and is saturated with self-interest.
In other words, Irving threw the latest NBA version of
a two-year-old fit.
Conversely, just hours after Irving’s trade request made
headlines, Wall signed a four-year extension with the Wizards. Wall is staying put and trying to build
something that Washington hasn’t had since 1978: a NBA champion. He’s pursuing his career-defining ring and
writing his legacy organically: no team hopping, no trade demands, no
drama. Instead of shunning Washington
because of all it isn’t, Wall is committed to elevating D.C. - a post-disco era
third-world NBA town - to basketball’s pinnacle. And Wall’s making that commitment in his typical
all-business, no bull---- style: It’s as if Wall’s never seen a daytime soap, is
unfamiliar with Susan Lucci and is disgusted by hysterical, tearless faux-cries.
Considering recent team history, Wall, not Irving,
should be seeking professional asylum from his current employer. But that’s not Wall’s style. Putting the money aside (it’s so inevitably
crazy for NBA stars that it’s irrelevant), Wall’s decision to remain with
Washington – a team that needs him more than he needs it - indicates that our
#2 values being synonymous with one team and one city and endearing himself to
one fan base. In other words, Wall doesn’t
just value fame, advancing his “brand” and chasing titles, he values something
that’s all but lost in major sports today: loyalty.
So while Cleveland deals with chaos in the wake of
Irving’s drama-bomb, consider, and appreciate, the calm surrounding the
Wizards. Consider and appreciate John
Wall, a man who has determined that the greenest grass grows beneath his feet.
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