As much as I'd love to see this team make a deep playoff run this year, I would not mind if they decided to shut Kyrie down for the rest of the year, as well as Smart.
Injuries have just killed us this year, and as a result we unfortunately won't be able to truly contend for Banner 18 this year, if people thought we had a chance.
That said, I never thought this was going to be our Banner year anyways, but that next year was going to be the start of our "dynasty" and the year we officially begin our trek towards Banner 18. That thinking was caused by the roster turnover that occurred last summer, the continued reign of Lebron's Cavaliers and the Warriors and it was kind of emphasized even further when we sadly lost Hayward 6 minutes into the year.
We certainly could match up very well against the likes of Golden State and Houston, but again, injuries have just hampered our chances.
But once we get back a healthy Hayward, Kyrie, Smart, and Theis next year, and hopefully add a few more pieces (via small trades/signings and draft picks), we could make a run for Banner 18 next year, and hope teams like the Warriors and Cavaliers sink a bit (could especially be true depending on what Lebron does this summer).
I don't mean this to be a doom and gloom thread, but I frankly think even if Kyrie returns and Smart does too, it's going to be extremely difficult just to make it to the ECF, especially if we draw CLE in the 2nd round (which looks likely), so I would not mind shutting down Kyrie and Smart for the year and looking long term/ahead. The last thing we need is for Kyrie's injury to become a legitimate career issue (meaning... he never gets it fixed and just tries to play through it, instead of resting and doing whatever is necessary NOW and this off-season to get it close to 90-100%). It's probably also what the C's are thinking with Hayward's rehab and why they've been super hesitant to say there's a chance Hayward returns this year (which is understandable).