"He（Irving）'s got really strong hands," Stevens said. "When he shakes your hand, you know it." During a game against the Los Angeles Lakers in November, Irving nearly lost control of his dribble when Brandon Ingram slapped it away as Irving tried to get fancy in transition. The ball rolled free across the floor, and Irving raced to recover, muscling it from big man Brook Lopez near the top of the key.

"I don't remember what was going on," Ingram said. "It was a play where we had a defensive breakdown, and he just got through everybody and just messed up our whole defense." With a few dribbles, a recomposed Irving freed himself from a Lopez/Lonzo Ball double team then split Lopez and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope before finishing a left-handed layup — much to the delight of teammate Shane Larkin, who spilled off the bench in jubilation.

No matter how flashy Irving's dribble moves are, they'd be worthless if they didn't lead to buckets — the proverbial million-dollar move with a 10-cent finish. Case in point: After a screen set by Al Horford, Irving sent defender Dennis Schroder skidding past with a behind-the-back move during a matchup in Atlanta last season.

After Horford opened a path, Irving accelerated to split both Schroder and Dewayne Dedmon, but two other Hawks scrambled over, hoping to deny Irving near the basket. Fading off his right foot to create a bit of space against Kent Bazemore, Irving was forced to adjust in midair again when 6-foot-8 Taurean Prince (and his 6-foot-11 wingspan) leapt to contest. Somehow, Irving still angled the ball high off the glass.

Picking Irving up full court, Collison tried to cut off Irving's angle near midcourt. Unfazed, Irving went behind his back to change direction, and it was Collison who lost his footing and crashed to the floor. With a spin move, Irving effortlessly floated past Collison's prone body. In a sequence that featured 11 total dribbles, Irving needed just three to ratchet up his speed while splitting Myles Turner and Bojan Bogdanovic before finishing on the opposite side of the basket.

Just ask 2016-17 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green. During Boston's lone visit to Golden State last season, Irving tried to drive to Green's left, but the big man was able to shuffle along and deny him. Irving didn't just slam on the brakes — slowing from 10.2 mph to a mere 2.8 mph in seven-tenths of a second — but he practically melted into the ground while changing direction with a dribble between his legs before sliding off Green's right hip to get into the paint. Even with less than two feet of breathing room, Irving is able to calmly spin a left-handed layup off the glass.

During that early season game in Milwaukee, Irving tied Brogdon in a knot dribbling in front of the Boston bench and, with a fancy spin move in tight space, broke free toward the basket. Bucks big man John Henson came over with help, but Irving got low and tiptoed the baseline before somehow flinging a waist-high, two-handed backhand from the charge circle to a wide-open Horford near the top of the key.

"I remember that move specifically because I was like, 'Oh, man, I better knock that shot down after all the work that he just did,'" Horford said with a laugh. "It puts pressure on you. You gotta knock down those shots. "That's a top-10 play right there."

As good as Irving was attacking the basket last season, he was even better when he used the chaos he created off the dribble to generate open looks for teammates. The Celtics averaged 1.21 points per direct Irving drive whenever he passed out of it, compared with a still-robust 1.13 points when he finished with a shot, according to Second Spectrum data.

"It's one thing doing all these things with no defense, no pressure," Horford said. "It's another thing to do that in the middle of the game — having to make decisions — and he makes it all look so easy. "That's what impresses me most about what he does."