DALLAS Mavericks star Kyrie Irving is preparing to fight for the second NBA championship win of his career.
The 32-year-old, who won the 2016 Finals as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers, will soon face the Boston Celtics for the chance to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
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However, as far as First Take’s Stephen A. Smith is concerned, this win alone wouldn’t be enough to rank him among the best No.2s in NBA history after an excellent season alongside Luke Doncic.
“You can’t say that when there’s Scottie Pippen for Michael Jordan,” he told co-host Molly Qerim.
“You can’t say that when there’s Kobe Bryant to Shaquille O’Neal.
“Kyrie is one of the greatest, there’s no doubt about that.
“But when you talk about the greatest, Molly, I would like to remind you, Scottie Pippen is a six-time champion and one of the greatest defenders we’ve ever seen.
“You’re talking about Kobe Bryant, he’s one of the top 10, some would say top five players in the history of basketball.”
Smith added that Irving should be “in the conversation in terms of one of the three to five best teammates in the history of basketball.”
Fans wasted no time in sharing their thoughts on the debate on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“I agree. Can we stop with all the ‘biggest’ nonsense?” one fan said.
“[Anthony Edwards] is the new [Michael] Jordan, the best Mavs backcourt of all time, the best second player in Kryrie.
“Stop and enjoy the talent. It’s too early for any of these discussions.”
A second commented: “Labeling Kobe as #2 co-star alongside Shaq is ridiculous.”
As another stated, “MJ carried Pippen.”
While a fourth suggested: “Add [Dwayne] Wade to the list too.”
Irving and Doncic have been in great form during this postseason for Dallas.
NBA Western Conference Playoffs
First round
Oklahoma City Thunder (1) 4-0 New Orleans Pelicans (8)
Los Angeles Clippers (4) 2-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)
Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 4-0 Phoenix Suns (6)
Denver Nuggets (2) 4-1 Los Angeles Lakers (7)
Conference Semifinals
Oklahoma City Thunder (1) 2-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)
Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 4-3 Denver Nuggets (2)
Conference Finals
Minnesota Timberwolves (3) 1-4 Dallas Mavericks (5)
Throughout the Playoffs, Irving averaged 22.8 points, 5.2 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Doncic averaged 28.8 points, 9.6 rebounds and 8.8 assists.
The Mavericks will head to TD Garden for the series opener on Thursday, June 6.
Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 pm ET, with ABC scheduled to broadcast the game.
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