King James Gospel
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Cavs vs Raptors Game 2: What We Learned

By Jackson Flickinger

May 3, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (center) huddles with his team before game two of the second round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
May 3, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (center) huddles with his team before game two of the second round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 3, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey reacts in the third quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game two of the second round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
May 3, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey reacts in the third quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game two of the second round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /

6. The Raptors need everything to go right to win.

One of the biggest difference in this series has been the ability of the Cavs to dominate the three-point line. You can’t win in today’s NBA if you can’t shoot from the three-point line effectively. It’s really as simple as that.

The Cavs were 18 of 33 (54.5 percent) from three-point range. The Raptors on the other hand didn’t even attempt as many threes as the Cavs made. Cleveland scored 39 more points from 3 than Toronto did in Game 2 alone.

The Raptors offense is designed around scoring in the paint and off of midrange jumpers. Scoring in the paint is effective, but relying on midrange jumpers isn’t.

The margin for victory for the Raptors is very small while playing this style. Toronto has to hope that they can dominate the paint, make a majority of their mid-range shots, protect the ball, and that the Cavs are having a terrible night shooting. It’s very hard for all of those things to happen at one time.

Simply put, Toronto really doesn’t have a high-octane offense that can keep up with the Cavs. You can’t rely on long twos and beat an exceptional shooting three-point shooting team that can also score in the paint and play defense.

The math simply doesn’t work out.