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Cleveland Cavaliers: How Kyle Korver helps the frontcourt

By Dan Gilinsky

Dec 19, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver (26) smiles as he leaves the floor after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 19, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver (26) smiles as he leaves the floor after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
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The addition of Kyle Korver improves the Cleveland Cavaliers three-point shooting immensely. That’s not all that he adds though.

Kyle Korver is one of the best pure shooters in the NBA, and one of the best three-point specialists this league has seen (42.9 percent for his career). His ability to space the floor makes driving lanes more open for teammates to slash to the basket.

What I find to be less obvious to the casual fan is him opening up offensive rebounding. To put this into context, Dwight Howard is getting more offensive rebounds per game (4.64) than any point in his career at 31, per TeamRankings.

He’s at the top of the NBA in that category. I realize Howard is routinely near the top of the league in offensive boards, so you might be thinking how does Korver contribute to that?

As initially reported by Colby Giacubeno, defenses must make one of two choices with Korver and a legitimate post presence. You are forced to either close down on a player such as Kevin Love or LeBron, or you can take your chances with one-on-one post-ups.

The Cavs are seventh in the NBA in points per possessions with post-ups. With the threat of Korver, you will likely see that go up even more. When defenses do choose to double and are scrambling to close out on threes, you’ll see being forced to rotate.

There is more room in the paint when defenders are helping get out on Korver on off-ball screens, which often leads to scramble situations, too. You’ll then see the offensive glass open up for someone as relentless as Tristan Thompson.

I haven’t seen many teams who can box out both Double T and Love. You add in the seven-foot height of Channing Frye, that’s pretty tough as time goes on. To illustrate both of these points, here is Dane Carbaugh with some film breakdown:

Those kinds of scramble plays really bring out the full array for the dead-eye shooter. You may not be aware that he can drop in pinpoint passes, too. Korver plays off defensive aggressiveness toward his shot well. He’s great at finding the roll man and hitting cutters back side. Here’s a textbook example of that with Paul Millsap getting an easy jam:

To make a long story short, it’s not just the widely-publicized sharpshooting of Korver that has kept him in the league for 13 years. He’s going to be a well-rounded contributor that will put his teammates in favorable situations.

Related Story: LeBron and Lue Comment On Cavs' Trades

What do you think Kyle Korver adds to the team besides shooting. Let us know in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.