There have been a lot of great guard duos throughout NBA history. The Splash Brothers out of the Golden State Warriors system, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili who won a lot with the San Antonio Spurs, and Isiah Thomas along with Joe Dumars from the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons are just some who are in contention to be the best. However, one pair who is still in the NBA Playoffs got heralded to be part of this extremely exclusive list. After the Dallas Mavericks' pairing of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving ate up the Minnesota Timberwolves, they may have just entered the conversation.
Kyrie Irving shuts down the discourse
Clearly, the greatest NBA duo of all time must have proven that they can win it all in the NBA Playoffs. The Mavericks still have not done that but they are five games away from basketball immortality. All of this discussion could be a source of distraction for most players because the discourse does not make sense just yet. So, Kyrie Irving went out to question why he and Luka Doncic were even given the prospective title. This is largely given that they have not even won the series against the Timberwolves, via ClutchPoints.
“Who said that? It doesn't mean anything if we don't win a ring together, and I say that very responsibly too. I'm not saying that we aren't great now but there are other back courts that are more deserving right now of that recognition. I think once we put a good run together and look back on it, that will be our time. But, right now, show a lot of respect to the guys who have come before us. Our time will come,” Kyrie Irving said.
There is a realistic shot that the master of ball handling and Doncic will become the greatest guard duo in league history. But, they need to win this NBA Playoffs clash against the Timberwolves first. Then, the Mavericks have to close out the job against who wins between the Boston Celtics or Indiana Pacers. Their time will come. But, bold proclamations about being the GOAT backcourt? It might be too early given how they're still just in the Western Conference Finals.
Mavericks torment the Timberwolves yet again
While they are far from being the greatest to ever do it, that does not mean that they cannot enjoy molly whopping their opponents. Doncic and Irving took turns playing the role of tormentor whenever they had the ball against the Timberwolves.
For the third NBA Playoffs clash in a row, Chris Finch had no schematic answer for these two. Doncic picked apart their blitzes and double teams while still scoring fairly efficiently. He knocked down 50% of his shots from the field for 33 points. Doncic also ended up dropping five assists, grabbing seven rebounds, and recording five steals.
Irving, meanwhile, was doing nearly the same thing. He shot 12 for 20 on the field for 33 points. His dime-dropping acumen resulted in four assists while he also stole the ball once.
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