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Cleveland Cavaliers player watch: J.R. Smith’s milestones to look for in 2016-17

By Mikaela Rakos

Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith (5) celebrates his three point basket late in the fourth quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith (5) celebrates his three point basket late in the fourth quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 13, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith (5) and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) go after a loose ball during the fourth quarter in game five of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 13, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith (5) and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) go after a loose ball during the fourth quarter in game five of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

900th Steal

Although he is mostly known for his offense, Smith proved he can be a lockdown defender last season. It started when defensive specialist Shumpert was out for the beginning of the season and continued through Game 7 in the NBA Finals. Because of his defensive skills, Smith can hit a milestone in steals this year. As of right now, he has 854 steals and averages one per game. If he can get that number of steals over his career average of 69 games per year, he can finish the year with 923 total. That means he’ll hit the milestone for his 900th steal.