The Cleveland Cavaliers are at the point in their season where they need to start playing for each other especially with such little time left to form chemistry.
Over the course of the season, the Cleveland Cavaliers have been the league’s best spot-up team. There are a few things to take away from that statement.
For starters, when Cleveland plays to get the open shot, they are obviously one of the best in the league. Secondly, this challenge to continue this will mainly fall the team’s playmakers, Jordan Clarkson, LeBron James, and eventually Kevin Love.
On those such possessions ending in a spot-up jumper, the Cavs score 1.08 points per possession, the best in the league. They also boast the league’s second-best effective field goal percentage at 54.9%. To add even more, they are in the top five in the league in scoring off those such possessions, converting on over 40% of those shots.
This has been Cleveland’s bread and butter, and they might be turning away from it.
The one mystery surrounding this team is the disappearance of Kyle Korver. While there’s no question players and teams go through slumps, Korver, in his last five games, has yet to match the total from the night in Atlanta in which he erupted for 30 points.
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Korver is an above average team defender, but he’s truly one-dimensional on the offensive end. Korver takes about three-quarters of his shots from catch-and-shoots which is one of the highest on the team. However, Korver also has an effective field goal percentage of 66.5% on such shots, which is significantly higher than the team average.
While Korver does not define the team, his inability to get going could be a direct result of an increase in isolation ball since the arrival of the four additions.
Could their arrival be a reason for Korver’s lack of production?
Another example that can relate back to playing unselfishly is Jordan Clarkson.
Jordan Clarkson and his play off the bench has been one stellar reason why the Cavs need to play for each other. In Clarkson’s five games for Cleveland, he has an effective field goal percentage over 16% higher when he catches and shoots than when he pulls up. That trend probably follows the entire team and could be a huge spark for this team when they choose to find each other on the offensive end.
Unsurprisingly, this team is one of the best in the league, yet they rank in the bottom five in passes per game. So, they know their bread and butter, but they’ve yet to make it a priority on offense.
The Cavs, even after the most recent additions, are still a team in the bottom third of the league in assists. Their offensive needs more passing, more unselfishness, and less isolation play in order to succeed again.
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Does this fall solely upon LeBron James? Of course not. Even if James puts up insane numbers like he did against San Antonio, the second unit and starting role players must succeed for this team to make a deep playoff run.