Kyrie vs. Isaiah: Which Star Will Shine Brighter in New Home?

Now that we’ve covered the influence the Kyrie Irving-Isaiah Thomas (plus) trade will have on the Eastern Conference, let’s dive into the impact the two point guards will have on their new teams.

When Irving asked to leave Cleveland, his hopes were to escape the enveloping umbra cast by LeBron James and become the king of his own land. Though the Celtics added All-Star forward Gordon Hayward in free agency, there’s no doubt Boston is about to be Kyrie’s team.

Without LeBron around saying “do this,” “be there,” “stop that,” or “see here,” Kyrie will be free to run around all day. The four-time All-Star has spent the last six seasons brushing up on looking down and working on his roar, but is he going to be a mighty king? Should enemies beware?

If you want to ditch this and go pop in some Disney classics, I wouldn’t blame you. (We all know you’re not saving those VHS tapes for the kids.) We’ll be here with statistical comparisons for the two guards involved in the Association’s latest offseason blockbuster.

Kyrie vs. Isaiah: 2017-18 Odds

OVER/UNDER POINTS PER GAME

• Kyrie Irving: 29.0 PPG
• Isaiah Thomas: 23.5 PPG

Last year, when IT averaged 28.9 PPG in Boston, the Celtics’ next leading scorer was Avery Bradley with 16.3 PPG. Though Kyrie is a superior offensive talent, fellow newcomer Gordon Hayward is going to get his. Hayward hasn’t averaged under 19 PPG since 2013-14. Plus Irving doesn’t want to be king of France; he wants to be king of a nation that actually wins wars. Hayward was top 30 in efficiency last year. It’s in Kyrie’s best interest to let him occupy a small share of the spotlight. But that just means he probably won’t reach the 30 PPG mark.

With Thomas entering the Robin role to LeBron’s Batman, duplicating his 2016-17 production is going to be awfully tough. While LeBron has been a member of the Cavs, no other player has ever led the team in scoring. And since James’ return in 2014-15, he’s never averaged more than 26.4 PPG in a season.

OVER/UNDER ASSISTS PER GAME

• Kyrie Irving: 5.6 APG
• Isaiah Thomas: 6.3 APG

I wouldn’t go telling John Stockton this, but neither of the two All-Star PGs has ever averaged more than 6.3 APG in any season. If Kyrie was slow to dish to LeBron, why would he be any quicker to abandon iso-ball for Gordon Hayward?

Though it’s reasonable to assume IT will take advantage of his new All-Star teammates, it’s unlikely he will serve as the primary ball-handler playing alongside LBJ.

OVER/UNDER TURNOVERS PER GAME

• Kyrie Irving: 3.5 TPG
• Isaiah Thomas: 2.5 TPG

Even in his first two seasons in the league, when he was the best player on the Cavs’ roster, Kyrie never averaged more than 3.2 turnovers per game. But his usage rates also never surpassed 30 in those years. Don’t expect Harden or Westbrook-like turnover numbers, but an increase from Irving’s career average should be anticipated.

Considering Thomas only averaged 2.8 turnovers per game last season, with the fourth-highest usage rate in the NBA, it’s hard to see that number going up in Cleveland.

OVER/UNDER USAGE RATE

• Kyrie Irving: 35.5 UR
• Isaiah Thomas: 28.5 UR

There are only a handful of coaches in the NBA capable of preventing a Westbrook-type usage from Irving; fortunately for the Celtics, Brad Stevens is one of them.

Irving’s usage rates over the last two seasons — 29.9 and 28.8 — suggest IT won’t completely plummet from his 32.8 in 2016.

OVER/UNDER PLAYER EFFICIENCY RATING

• Kyrie Irving: 24.0 PER
• Isaiah Thomas: 23.0 PER

Both players enjoyed career-highs in PER last year — 26.59 for IT; 23.09 for Kyrie — but only one is set to enjoy more production in 2017-18.