Can J.R. Smith revive his career in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ rebirth?
As Cleveland Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith heads into his 15th season, he has the opportunity to revive his career with a new era in Cleveland beginning.
If there is one thing for sure, there are opportunities for anyone to produce this coming season. With LeBron James leaving, there will be much-needed production to be added and its anybody’s spot to step up for the Cavs.
Smith finished last year with the notable mental error in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals, forgetting the score with four seconds left in possession and the chance to hit the game-winner, a brain cramp that resulted in justified criticism.
His error was costly which lead to the loss to the Warriors in the first game of the Finals and could have given the Cavs much need momentum through the rest of the series.
Since Smith has joined the Cavs in 2015 his scoring average has gone down every season. However, this year, Smith can give the Cavs more production and show that he can still produce even though he is getting older in his career.
This past season, he struggled to shoot the three and was cold for much of the year. He averaged 8.3 ppg on 40.3 percent shooting from the field and, from 3-point range, he only shot 37.5 percent. In fact, in the 2016-2017 season, he struggled as well.
Smith has always been a streaky shooter but this year it could be an opportunity for him to be a reliable veteran on a young team that could help propel the team with consistent shooting.
Smith still has respectable athletic ability, which he can use to create shots off the dribble and get to the rim. This is the perfect opportunity for him to make the Cavs fans proud and return to the old Swish we know, knocking down crazy threes and finishing nasty dunks.
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What better way for him to end his career in Cleveland than with a great season?