NBA legend thinks it would've been easy to guard Mavericks star Kyrie Irving

NBA legend Gary Payton, who won Defensive Player of the Year as a point guard in 1996 as a member of the Seattle Supersonics, believes he could've held Irving in check, especially in the 1990s.

"I could've put my hands on him," Payton said on the "Barnie and Rab Show." "See, we're hand-checking. We can control him. All that dribble, dribble, sh**? I get it. That sh**, if I put my motherfu*** hand on you, make you go anywhere I want to and rip you, and I rip you all the time, that's gonna be it. And I'm gonna pound-hound him."

Payton is arguably the greatest defending point guard of all time and he's always had confidence in his abilities, but the hand-checking rules were much different back then. It was encouraged to be more physical in Payton's prime, but the NBA restricted the hand-checking to allow more movement from offensive players.

However, Irving is likely talented enough to succeed in any era, even in the physicality of the 90s. His shooting would be the main difference-maker, as he's nearly a career 40% shooter from deep. That was rare for a guard in the 90s, especially with the volume in which Irving shoots. He probably could've handled it just fine.