Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving has been carving up opposing big men as if he arrives to Quicken Loans Arena along side a giant blue ox.
A spin-move off of Al Jefferson, a cross-over of Marcin Gortat and a high-pick split of the Boston Celtics defense which featured a 6-foot-8-inch Brandon Bass are moves that headline the first chapter of the first-overall pick’s career. But with all respect due to the aforementioned, Irving, on Friday night, will have to face a man who may potentially be the best post defender he may ever play against during his career in the NBA in the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard.
Despite his well-documented distractions, Howard continues to be a force in the paint, rarely playing nice with those smaller than him. Which is why Irving — a 191-pound point guard who relies heavily on slashing and weaving and bouncing his way toward the rim – can only smile and wonder what’s in store for him when the Cavaliers tip off against the once-vaunted Magic.
Instead of up-and-unders, left-handed beauties or right-hash kisses off of the glass, Irving speculates that he may have to add a new high-percentage shot to his arsenal: one that lofts “almost as high as the shot clock.” But Irving asserts that he won’t be able to survive wholly on lay-ins, instead opting for the occasional “stop and pop,” something that the Cavaliers’ rookie has had almost equal success, hitting 52 percent of his field goal attempts between 10-and-15 feet. Keeping the big man honest is what it may be all about.
On the defensive end, becoming Howard’s foil will not be in the hands of Irving. Instead, All-Star hopeful Anderson Varejao will play what may wind up being his most physical match-up of the season to date. The team leader in minutes, Varejao will have to deny passes while attempting to hold his ground in the event Howard does indeed wind up with the ball on the block. And when it comes time to rest the Brazilian big man, Cavs head coach Byron Scott aims to be physical right back. “We have a lot of fouls to give,” he said following Thursday afternoon’s practice, mentally tallying all of the centers he will have at his disposal in the event the team opts to send Howard, a notoriously poor free throw shooter, to the charity stripe.
“There are different ways to defend him,” said Scott. ”I don’t know if any of them are going to totally stop him. That’s what most great players in this league do. Just try to slow him down and take away one or two things. Most great players have counters for those things as well. You’re not going to stop him from scoring. You just have to make sure he works for everything he gets.”
And if this crop of Cavaliers has proven anything through the first month of the 2011-12 season, is that everything is rooted in work. Full-on effort in games against opponents who may have considered the Wine and Gold a collective pushover, recently personified by 10 offensive rebounds by Varejao against the Boston Celtics. A massive halftime lead in the Staples Center saw the Lakers clinging to a one-shot lead late in the fourth quarter. A star-studded Knicks squad, though struggling to play cohesive basketball, was a 10-point victim in the confines of Cleveland.
The Magic are presently 4.5 games out of first place in the Eastern Conference, but they’re also 2.5 games away from being on the outside looking in, losing six of their last 10 games. Directly outside the ring of eight are the young, inexperienced and former 19-win Cavaliers.
There’s no telling how this contest will unfold, but the narrative which used to be so familiar to Cavalier fans just a few seasons ago is long gone. The new one, despite being cloaked in the pending departure of Orlando’s superstar, will feature a new Cavaliers’ first-overall pick. His success against the leaning tower of Dwight remains to be seen. Thankfully for Howard, if Irving breaks Howard’s ankles while chipping away at his pride, he’ll at least be in very good company.
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(AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
