Cleveland Cavaliers: What we learned from JR Smith’s dominant performance over the Pacers

CLEVELAND, OH – NOVEMBER 1: Head Coach Tyronn Lue of the Cleveland Cavaliers talks with the players during a time at during the game against the Indiana Pacers on November 1, 2017 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Cleveland Cavaliers finally broke out of their funk with a 115-108 win over the Indiana Pacers.

The Cavs started off hot offensively scoring 73 first-half points, but the offense sputtered in the second half making things a little closer than they needed to be. But, with the way things are going right now, the Cleveland Cavaliers will take a win no matter what it looks like.

LeBron James notched his eighth triple-double of the season with 26 points, 11 assists, and 10 boards, and 4 steals. Unfortunately, he also had 11 turnovers as well.

JR Smith seemed to benefit most out of re-inserting Tristan Thompson in the starting lineup. He finished the game with a season high 23 points on 7 of 13 shooting from deep. This was one of the first times this season we’ve seen JR look like himself. It was refreshing to see.

It wasn’t pretty in the second half, but the Cavs found a way to pull out the win. That’s something we haven’t been able to say a lot recently. Here’s what we learned from the win.

Lesson No. 1

JR Smith playing like himself can go a long way.

The Cavs need an improvement at shooting guard. They haven’t gotten a lot out of their starters at that position whether it’s Wade or Smith. There have been rumors about George Hill coming to Cleveland, but the biggest improvement they can make is Smith playing like we know he can.

Smith was back playing a position he was comfortable in. While he wasn’t playing a different position per se, he was playing in a different system. Jae Crowder spent much of his time offensively on the perimeter and took away some of the looks Smith was used to seeing. As a result, Smith felt forced to put the ball on the floor which isn’t exactly his game.

What's to credit for J.R. Smith finding the hot hand tonight? Film study, a mechanical adjustment, and teammates instilling confidence in him. #Cavs pic.twitter.com/Dcw2iEjwTr
— Spencer Davies (@SpinDavies) January 27, 2018

Moving Thompson back into the lineup changes the whole dynamic offensively. Smith was able to get the looks that he has been used to getting during his time in Cleveland. The four-man starting unit of Smith, James, Love, and Thompson was able to set the tempo for the game setting a +15.4 in 29 minutes of play.

We’ll see if Smith continues to get looks like this. Him knocking down three or four triples a game will go a long way in helping this team offensively.

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