02-11-2026, 03:27 PM
(02-11-2026, 03:10 PM)DallasMaverick Wrote: So, what if Kyrie is the full version of himself? The multi-all-star version? The same level as he was before the injury?
Wouldn't the team be a contender, as constructed?
No. You are talking about a lottery team who had a much better record when AD was playing. There is so much ground to make up. If Kyrie really comes back 100% (which seems unlikely at least as much due to age as due to knee) and Flagg takes a big jump (which I expect, although not necessarily right away) then this should be a team competing for top 6 seed. Lot of other factors like does Lively get healthy, do they get anything from lottery pick rookie year, do they do anything with TPE, do they improve roster with MLE. Plenty of questions. But I didn't think this could be a contender with AD, and its even less likely without him. That trade signals a longer reset than some people are thinking. I think its a good three year process if things go well and most likely if Kyrie is still on the team he will be coming off the bench by then.