At the quarter pole of the season just passed, who is the Celtics Team MVP to date? It seems to me that strong cases could be made for both Kyrie and Big Al. What say the Port Cellar?
Celtics Team MVP to date
- Thread starter Saints Rest
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I'll go with Kyrie, but I think it's close.
Why? Because Kyrie is the guy that can make "that shot" to close out an opponent, even more so than IT4 last year.
Why? Because Kyrie is the guy that can make "that shot" to close out an opponent, even more so than IT4 last year.
Come on! Horford has played well no doubt but come on? How mediocre a team would we be without Kyrie?
I tend to agree with the idea that Al's set of skills are rarer than Kyrie's. To be more precise Al's constellation of impacts on the game is rarer - Kyrie's way on the court is extremely unique with the ball handling wizardry, but there are still lots of guards in the league who could approximate Kyrie's overall impact (in my opinion).
How many centers in the league are simultaneously top tier defenders, passers, and good scorers with three point range?
If they lose Kyrie for five games, they won't be nearly as bad off as losing Al. Kyrie is the better player without question, but his backfill is less of a a drop off. They have guys who do what Kyrie does, just not nearly as well. They have nobody that does what Horford does.
I think Kyrie's scoring is absolutely vital but Al impresses me with all the other things he does, including his passing and defense.
One thing that makes me rate Kyrie more highly is that, for whatever reason, the team doesn't ask him to go into God Mode until his final shift in the 4th quarter. It's probably a combination of not wanting to tire him out, and wanting to develop a more diverse offense, but the change in approach at the end of games is quite noticeable.
I think that extra gear that Kyrie has makes me rate him more highly, but it's very close.
I think that extra gear that Kyrie has makes me rate him more highly, but it's very close.
Kyrie's on off is actually a -1 and Horfords is +13, so it seems not that mediocre compared to without Al.
If we're going by PER, it's Kyrie, and it's not particularly close.
If I had to go solely by expectation exceeding, and valuing defense fully, I'd go Brown, slightly over Tatum though, 1-2.
If I had to go solely by expectation exceeding, and valuing defense fully, I'd go Brown, slightly over Tatum though, 1-2.
Harden, Giannis, Lebron gotta be ahead of him, but I can see him in the next tier with Davis, Curry, Durant, and amazingly enough at least at this moment, Aldridge
The Bucks are 12-10 and he doesn't have the advantage of averaging a triple double. They'll have to finish better than a 6 seed for that to happen. They've been playing better with Bledsoe and they'll get Parker in February, so it's possible. Pels will have to play better too.
Horford for Celtics MVP to me thus far. Kyrie has been great particularly in the clutch, but Horford has been the key to an amazing defense and a major part of making the offense function.
I voted Horford. Kyrie is the go-to guy when they need a basket and has been everything we hoped for and more, but Al is the engine that makes this team run at both ends.
I don’t think roster construction should dictate who a team’s MVP is. Horford is the C’s most indispensable player, but Kyrie is the most valuable.
