Damian Lillard appeared on Jeff Teague's 'Club 520 Podcast' and opened up on the toughest opponent to guard one-on-one in the NBA. Lillard's answer didn't take much deliberation, as he chose Kyrie Irving as the toughest matchup before breaking down the impossible range of Irving's scoring ability.
Damian Lillard: “1-on-1, Kyrie a tough matchup. He's just a tough matchup. You can guard him perfectly, & he’ll still make it. Either hand, bumping him, he does it when it don't look like it's hard to. Sometimes people do it and they make it look smooth, all net, you're like, 'Damn.' That can turn into him making every shot.”
Jeff Teague: "At one point in my career, I guarded Kyrie more than anyone in the NBA. I got killed every time."
Irving has been considered one of the best one-on-one players in the NBA for years, with some even claiming Irving could be the greatest ever from a one-on-one skill perspective. Irving is one of the greatest dribblers and finishers in basketball history, so if he puts those skills together, it makes it impossible for most people to guard him without a help defender.
Kyrie averaged 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists last season, excelling on the Mavericks with another nightmare to guard one-on-one, Luka Doncic . The duo play off each other to attack opponents relentlessly, as both can dissect any defense they want through just their on-ball ability.
Damian Lillard is coming off a tough debut season on the Milwaukee Bucks. He averaged 24.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 7.0 assists last season as he dealt with professional and personal upheaval, looking motivated to return to being the All-NBA guard we know he is capable of being.
Kyrie Is Motivated To Win A Title On The Mavericks
Kyrie played a crucial role in the Mavericks' surprise run to the NBA Finals last season, having one of the best all-around seasons of his entire career. He is becoming a tenacious on-ball defender, a high-effort rebounder for his size, and plugs into any offensive setup Jason Kidd wants to run.
Irving knows he's doing the right things and has a roster around him motivated to win with a top-three player like Luka and a coach like Kidd, who was one of Kyrie's basketball icons. He made it clear the Mavs will continue contending even after their Game 5 loss to lose the NBA Finals 4-1 to the Celtics.
"Very confident [in the team's future]. That's one positive that we can take from this series, just how far we made it and how proud I am of the guys. We answered a lot of questions this year on what we're capable of doing. Now it's just about being consistent. I think, probably in the last week, I said that I wanted [us] to be remembered as one of the best teams of this era."
With the additions of Klay Thompson, Quentin Grimes, and Naji Marshall, the Mavericks will hope they can retain their position as the best team in the West. It'll depend on Kyrie's health and form as well as Luka's defense and conditioning. But if the pieces come together perfectly, the Mavericks could be the team to beat in the West next season.
Related: Kyrie Irving On Time With The Mavericks: "The Greatest Portion Of My Career"
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