Andre Iguodala reserves rarefied praise for LeBron James and Kevin Durant's former teammate: "I'm putting Kyrie up there"
LeBron James is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time. That said, one of the things that is also frequently mentioned when discussing James is his ability to make his teammates better. As fans and analysts have seen over the years, James' ability to draw the double team is a big part of what truly opens up his game for his teammates.
The four-time NBA champ has long considered himself a pass-first player who prioritizes getting his teammates involved. Although he has the ability to blow past bigger defenders and out-muscle smaller defenders, his vision and passing ability make him a multi-faceted threat.
As someone who competed against James for a number of years, Andre Iguodala knows a thing or two about appreciating the future Hall of Famer's game. Since retiring, Iguodala has opened up on players whose games he appreciates the most. Speaking on an episode of his Point Forward podcast, Iguodala weighed in:
"Now that I've removed myself from the game I've actually found moments where I can appreciate them. Now I will say it's only a few guys. I say two guys that I can truly appreciate why they're playing so Kevin Durant, LeBron James. I'm putting Kyrie in that bucket too, and Carmelo."
Kyrie Irving's time with both LeBron James and Kevin Durant
As Andre Iguodala pointed out, Kyrie Irving was a teammate of both LeBron James and Kevin Durant. While the fourth player he mentioned, Carmelo Anthony, spent time playing with James in LA, the James-Irving duo has long been considered one of the best in NBA history.
In addition to the fact that LeBron James' playmaking created opportunities for Irving to fire away from deep, both can create their own shots. Both of these points were driving factors in the duo's ability to win the 2016 NBA Finals.
Despite their success together, the duo went their separate ways, with Irving going to Boston and James going to LA. After two seasons in Boston, Irving then went to Brooklyn, where he and Kevin Durant joined forces.
Unfortunately for both Irving and the Nets organization, the 2016 NBA champ played in just 143 games over four seasons, averaging just 35.75 games a year. While Irving and Durant, combined with James Harden, of course, were expected to make waves, they spent little time on the court together.
Although Kyrie Irving is now thriving in Dallas, there has continued to be talk of Irving and James reuniting, given their complimentary playstyles.