It’s time to start Rodney Hood

It’s time for the Cleveland Cavaliers to start Rodney Hood.

A starting lineup of George Hill, J.R. Smith, Rodney Hood, LeBron James and Larry Nance Jr. is the best option for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

I’ve already discussed why Nance Jr. should be in the starting lineup and he and Hill have made for a dynamic defensive duo since the All-Star break ended, only serving to strengthen that stance.

However, if the Cavaliers don’t insert Hood in the starting lineup, a player who is currently their most dependable second option, they’re taking a significant risk that can be exploited nightly. In fact, the Cavaliers’ post-break losses can be traced to one common theme: the lack of a second go-to scorer.

James is, of course, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ “Batman”. Even when Kevin Love returns, the pecking order will be James and then everybody else. Yet, over the Cleveland Cavaliers’ last five games, there’s a trend in the Cavaliers’ lineup data that needs to be explored:

In their top ten post-trade lineups, the duo of James and Hood are in eight of them.

(In four out of their top five lineups, Hill appears beside this duo. Nance Jr. appears in five out of their top ten lineups and in four of those lineups, the duo of James and Hood is present.)

My suggested starting lineup of Hill, Smith, Hood, James and Nance Jr. has a net rating of +42.8 in just three minutes of action together. A number that high is unsustainable but that’s likely a good thing; although their offensive rating of 180.2 is absurdly high and indicative of a small sample size, the defensive rating of this five-man unit is unlikely to be 137.4 on a nightly basis.

Furthermore, with the individual talents of each player in that five-man unit, their offense will continue to be successful while a defensive struggle is unlikely. As a collective, each member of this potential starting lineup is a smart and athletic player who will give maximum effort on the defensive end and has a wingspan of at least 6-foot-8, giving the team impressive length and defensive potential.

(Opponents shot just 20.0 percent from the field against this lineup.)

Another number that is of particular importance in this potential starting lineup: 31.1. The Cavaliers had an assist on 31.1 percent of their plays when this lineup was on the court and though nobody in the lineup but James will record a high-volume of assists, it’s a lineup that features five intelligent players who are above-average playmakers for their position.

Five players who are “live” and able to make a play for their self or others with the ball in their hands.

Hill is a heady point guard who makes the right read, and pass, without concern for his stats. He’s also capable of taking the ball all the way to the rim or knocking down shots inside. Hill is making 63.0 percent of his shots in the restricted area and 42.5 percent of his three-point attempts this season.

Smith’s evolution as a passer since his arrival in Cleveland isn’t talked about enough, quite frankly. His play style is more reckless than any other Cavalier, with him shooting from the hip like John Wick, yet his offensive game is refined to a role that makes such recklessness negligible if he’s not relied on too heavily. He’s a premier catch-and-shoot threat that’s knocking down 39.1 percent of his shots when spotted-up behind the arc.

Nance Jr. is an explosive finisher in the pick-and-roll and a threat to be a pick-and-pop player from the center position. He’s also capable of putting the ball on the floor for straight-line drives and making a great pass to set-up a teammate. Like Tristan Thompson, Nance Jr. will also be a force on the offensive glass (2.6 offensive rebounds per game this season) and on screens. His gravity opens up space for both slashers and long-distance shooters.

James, the most complete player in the game and it’s most knowledgeable as well, had a rough knocking down threes in December and January is shooting 41.2 percent from three-point range in February, his third month this season shooting at least 40.0 percent from beyond the arc. He’s a threat to score from all three levels of the court, especially in the paint, where he’s at his most dominant (75.5 percent shooting within five feet of the rim this season). He’s the Point God of point-forwards and is averaging a whopping 8.9 assists per game to go along with 26.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.0 block per game. He’s the only Cav averaging over 20.0 points per game.

Up next, the man of the hour.

Hood is a player with a methodical scoring game and who can light it up from outside (shooting 39.5 percent from three this season and 45.8 percent from three since the trade). He’s another player who can score from all three levels and is probably their second-best playmaker out of the pick-and-roll thanks to the combination of his shooting, passing, finishing and feel for the game. In isolation, Hood is scoring 1.02 points per possession this season, scoring on 43.8 percent of his attempts (78th percentile).

Out of all the Cavaliers, he, James and Jordan Clarkson are the best scorers on the perimeter. However, unlike Clarkson, Hood is a stellar three-point shooter and able to be a much more consistent off-ball threat because of it (shooting 38.4 percent on catch-and-shoot threes).

As James has proven over the years, no matter who or how talented you are, he’ll have the ball for the majority of the offensive possessions; any second option will have to be able to play off of James.

Hood is averaging 16.1 points per game this season but has only averaged 10.6 per games since arriving in Cleveland. In the Cavaliers three games since the All-Star break, Hood is averaging just 8.0 points per game on 8.0 field goal attempts per game. The Cavaliers are 1-2, having needed someone with Hood’s scoring ability to step up beside James. He’s probably the Cavaliers most underutilized player, thanks to Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue’s questionable lineup decisions.

Cedi Osman has proven himself to be a dependable rotation player and defensive weapon with two-way potential. However, the Cavaliers need a player like Hood to start in his place. Hood is an offensive weapon with two-way potential and a much more dependable scorer than Osman, who doesn’t have the pure shooting stroke, scoring mentality or feel in the pick-and-roll that Hood possesses.

It’s long been time for the Cavaliers to make a lineup change but if Lue insists on starting Smith and Thompson for sentimentality’s sake, Hood should start over Osman moving forward. This way, there’s less playmaking pressure on James and a second go-to player in the starting lineup.

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