Why Cedi Osman starting makes LeBron James more dangerous

With Cedi Osman starting at small forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James is put in his best position to dominate.

It’s long been said that LeBron James would be most dangerous playing the “four”, or power forward position. He has the height, strength and length to battle with any opposing power forward while also having the athleticism, guard skills and post skills to thoroughly dominate his matchup.

With the Cleveland Cavaliers starting rookie Cedi Osman at small forward for the foreseeable future, many will get their wish over the next few weeks as James starts at power forward in place of Love.

Count Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue among those getting their wish.

Quote transcribed by ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:

"“It’s a big disadvantage [for the opponent] having [James] at the 4, because now you’ve got four guys that push it out on the break. I think that’s big.”"

James has played the power forward position for 47.0 percent of his minutes over the last two seasons and 34.0 percent of his minutes since the 2014-2015 season.

Lue opting to play James at the four extensively hearkens back to to the days when James was with the Miami Heat. From the 2010-2011 season to the 2013-2014 season, James played the power forward position for 57.0 percent of his total minutes while only having played the position for 11.0 percent of his minutes in his first seven seasons.

After developing his low-post skills in South Beach, James opted to operate out of the post regularly in the postseason. In his four years in Miami, James played the power forward position for 65.0 percent of his minutes in the postseason. In his first five playoff appearances (James’ Cavs missed the playoffs in his first two seasons), James played power forward for just 9.0 percent of his total minutes.

Since returning to Cleveland, James has played power forward for 43.0 percent of his minutes in the postseason.

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The source of James’ dynamicism at the position comes from his physical dominance (no matter who guards him at the position), feathery touch around the rim and his passing ability. It’s simply a difficult task to stop him one-on-one in the post, especially with him mastering go-to post moves like a drop-step or post fadeaway. That causes defenders to want to cheat off their man to provide help for their teammate but the result of such a decision often leaves enough passing space for the omniscient James to find a teammate with a fancy pass.

Only serving to aid James’ dominance is his improved three-point stroke. In Miami, James had overcame his early career shooting woes from the outside and nailed 36.9 percent of his three-point attempts after shooting 32.9 percent from three-point range in his first seven seasons. If you discount James’ first season in Miami, he shot 38.5 percent from three-point range in the last three seasons.

James’ three-point stroke hasn’t been as consistent in Cleveland, with him converting just 34.7 percent of his three-point attempts since his return. However, James is shooting 36.1 percent from three-point range over the past season and a half after shooting 33.3 percent from three-point range in his first two seasons back in the Land.

The importance of James’ outside shooting stroke is that while he can dominate from the power forward position with the ball in his hands, either in a halfcourt setting or when flying down the open court, an ability to thrive as a spot-up shooter would only serve to enhance his gravitational pull. With defenders literally unable to leave him alone, plenty of driving lanes and soft spots in the defense will open up.

Since the 2013-2014 season, there have only been two seasons James has shot under 38.8 percent on catch-and-shoot three-pointers. In 2015-2016, as he converted 33.3 percent from set three-point shots and this season, with him shooting 35.6 percent on set three-point shots.

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The numbers from this season aren’t stellar but at one point James was shooting a career-high from three-point range. With that said, James has evolved into a true three-point threat.

Statistically speaking, James really is just dominant from the power forward position.

Since the 2010-2011 season, there hasn’t been a single season where James posted a PER under 30 or held the opposing power forward to a PER under 21 while shooting 44.0 percent or less inside the arc. His average PER at the power forward position (since the 2010-2011) season is 34.0. His matchup’s average PER has been 16.6.

An average player’s PER is 15.0.

In other words, James has been more than twice as dominant than opposing power forwards while making them look like average (or slightly above average) players.

With George Hill, J.R. Smith and Cedi Osman able to hold their own on the perimeter and Tristan Thompson generally able to do the same on the interior, James can fly around and contest three-point attempts with gusto while providing valuable help as a weakside defender. James, who averages 1.0 block per game, is the team’s leading shot-blocker this season.

This may be the most dominant version of the Cavs yet and while this season has already had enough drama, it begs the question of where Kevin Love fits in when he returns and whether the Cavs try to make a move for a player like Oklahoma City Thunder small forward Paul George in the summer.

As James continues to age and lose the burst that allows him to blow past any position with ease, switching to the four looks like an increasingly smart option. Unfortunately, while Love can’t play the three they shouldn’t keep playing him at the center position extensively. It could lead to some interesting storylines in the summer.

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*All stats gathered from basketball-reference.com, NBA.com and 82games.com