Patrick Beverley Gets Honest About Kyrie Irving's NBA Finals Struggles

Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving has mostly struggled vs. the Boston Celtics

Joey Linn | Jun 14, 2024

Jun 12, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics in game three of the 2024 NBA Finals at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

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The Dallas Mavericks are on the verge of being swept by the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. After an impressive run to win the Western Conference, Dallas has looked overmatched by Boston in this series, and the play of Kyrie Irving has been a big reason why.

After averaging 27.0 PPG in the Western Conference Finals on 49.0% from the field, Irving is averaging just 21.0 PPG in the NBA Finals on 40.0% from the field. This dip in production from Irving is one of the biggest reasons why Dallas has been unable to win a game so far in this series, and it's something NBA veteran Patrick Beverley broke down in a recent episode of his Pat Bev podcast.

"Every shot that I've seen him miss has been back rim," Beverley said of Irving. "... You gotta give Jrue Holiday credit, too. Jrue Holiday, he's got real straps. Probably the last decade, consistently the last decade he's probably been the best defensive guard. I had a couple years, Marcus Smart had a couple years, but consistently Jrue has always been there... I just think he's missing shots, though. But they're playing good [defense], though."

This was very high praise for Holiday from Beverley, because the three-time All-Defensive guard was also one of the best guard defenders in basketball during his time with the LA Clippers, but believes Holiday holds that title for the last decade.

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JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.

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