The Cleveland Cavaliers have the best basketball player on the planet, and they also have a “lethal” version of a timeless basketball classic in their playbook — the pick-and-roll.
Anyone who’s played basketball competitively probably has tried it out at least once or twice, but it’s a whole different monster to defend when LeBron James and Kyrie Irving are running it.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe wrote an in-depth feature, which was published Tuesday, on the James-Irving pick-and-roll, and you can tell how much it’s feared throughout the league from the first few quotes.
“Most point guards, you don’t worry that much when they screen,” Toronto Raptors forward PJ Tucker told Lowe. “But Kyrie might be the best scorer on the team. If LeBron gets even a tiny angle on you, it’s over. He’s at the rim. … I have to make Kyrie dribble backward to give my guard a chance. But you don’t want LeBron rolling open to the rim, neither. It’s a nightmare.”
Said Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer, “LeBron will lay you out. Kyrie sets a good screen. They know all the tricks. They are a nightmare.”
And Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey: “It’s lethal.”
Lowe also added that the James-Irving pick-and-roll is the Cavs’ “best hope of wearing out (Golden State Warriors point guard) Stephen Curry, and repeating as champions.”
The Boston Celtics probably weren’t fans of that sentence, considering they currently trail the Cavaliers 2-1 in the Eastern Conference finals. So they still are guaranteed two more shots at dealing with what might be the NBA’s scariest play.
So make sure to watch out for that play in Tuesday’s Game 4 at Quicken Loans Arena. And in the meantime, you definitely should give Lowe’s incredible feature a read to see the intricate details on how James and Irving run the play.
Click to read more about the Irving-James pick-and-roll >>
Thumbnail photo via Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports Images
