Both Tristan Thompson and Kyrie Irving are playing better than their respective stat lines would suggest. What’s inspiring for Cavs fans is that coach Byron Scott has yet to play the two on the floor together at the same time. Based on the pick and roll demonstrations Irving has shown with Anderson Varejao, the prospects of Irving and Thompson (who is far more athletically superior to Varejao) on the floor together is something to look forward to.
Irving is averaging 13 points and 5 assists per game, while only seeing 27 minutes a contest. While those numbers aren’t by any means “eye popping” what should be taken into account is the fact that Byron Scott plays him alongside a very (and I mean very) trigger happy Antawn Jamison and an “out to prove his worth” Anderson Varejao, all while sharing a heavy load of
Irving’s minutes with Ramon Sessions. Basically, Irving isn’t just playing on a bad team, he’s playing on a bad team with a bunch of guys who are trying to make a name for themselves in the trade market. He's 13th in the league in assists per 48 minutes. If there were a stat for attempted assists--as in, dishing the ball to guy with a wide open shot or fairly clean look-- Irving would be among tops in the league in that department. Minus Sunday’s game against the Nets, the Cavs have been horrendous at shooting the ball in clean-look situations. If Jamison and Varejao were able to hit, at the minimum, half of their make-able attempts, Irving would be the early front runner for rookie of the year. Through the first three games, Jamison was shooting .100 from behind the arc and .375 from the field which isn’t all that bad until you consider that he averages 14 shots per game. The stats don’t tell the entire story either because, in watching the games, Jamison looks like nothing but a liability. It’s almost sad. Thank god he’s on the last year of his contract. As for Varejao, he’s playing very well thus far. He’s still the same Varejao who botches a fair share of easy points under the basket en route to crashing down on the floor and waving his arms in the air while asking for a foul, but he’s an asset to this young team.
Irving seems to have developed the most chemistry and trust with Varejao. As mentioned, the two of them have feasted on the pick and roll, something that could suit Tristan Thompson well. Coming off the bench, Thompson is seeing even far less playing time (19 mins pg) than Irving, but for the time he’s on the court he is a player that jumps out. He has come as advertised, and that’s a good thing. Thompson is basically a more athletically gifted Anderson Varejao. That’s why it should be very interesting to see him on the court with Irving whenever coach Scott decides to make that call. He doesn’t shoot well from the strike, and he will never be better than a career sixty percent, that’s just how it is. He has yet to attempt a jump shot, but he cleans up down low and has shown he can get to the basket fairly easier. His post game is better than I thought it would be this earlier into the season, and that’s very inspiring. Through 4 games he’s had 7 blocked shots. This is why, ultimately, I see the Cavs trading Varejao at some point in the next 18 months. It might be a while until we see Thompson in the starting line-up, but as his minutes increase he might become a very realistic candidate for rookie of the year.
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