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Rodney Hood and Larry Nance Jr. need to focus on improving their muscle strength

By Quenton S. Albertie

MEMPHIS, TN - FEBRUARY 23: Larry Nance Jr. #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers high fives Rodney Hood #1 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on February 23, 2018 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. 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 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - FEBRUARY 23: Larry Nance Jr. #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers high fives Rodney Hood #1 of the Cleveland Cavaliers during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on February 23, 2018 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. 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 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Rodney Hood and Larry Nance Jr. can both improve in one big way for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Getting stronger.

Cleveland Cavaliers restricted free agent Rodney Hood and center Larry Nance Jr. have five things in common.

They’re both 25-years-old, married, looked at as cornerstone pieces for the post-LeBron James Era and were traded by their former teams on the day of the 2018 NBA trade deadline. As for those four commonalities, the similarities in their lives could lead to an atypically high level of camaraderie between the two, battling like brothers on the court and dealing with similar pressures off of it.

They also both need to hit the weights and improve their muscle mass and strength in order to reach their potential.

Defense

For both players, improving their strength helps them on both ends and defensively, that reason is simply so that the two rail-thin playmakers can be stronger at the point-of-attack. Too often was Nance overpowered by stronger big men trying to establish position inside and, too often, Hood found himself unable to push players off their spots on the perimeter.

However, physical and gritty defense will take a team that has middling talent to another level.

It’s how teams like the Miami Heat, Indiana Pacers, Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons have made names for themselves over the past few seasons without much star power, especially relative to the talent amassed by championship-contenders. Of the teams listed, only one team finished with below 40 wins last season (Detroit) and missed the playoffs.

Two others would win 48 games (Indiana and Utah) while entering the playoffs with the fifth-seed.

The Pacers would take the LeBron-led Cavaliers to seven games in the first round. The Jazz defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were led by 2017 NBA MVP Russell Westbrook and All-Star Paul George.

The Miami Heat, a sixth-seed, won 44 games.

That said, with players like Hood; Nance; rookie point guard Collin Sexton; veteran point guard George Hill; veteran shooting guard J.R. Smith; veteran center Tristan Thompson; fifth-year guard Jordan Clarkson and second-year small forward Cedi Osman on the roster, there are plenty of players capable of playing top-tier defense.

Even Kevin Love and Kyle Korver have had games where they’ve been great team defenders.

That said, Hood and Nance improving their muscle strength is a great way to enhance their defensive capabilities.

Offense

On offense, improving muscle strength helps Hood in particular.

After getting into the lane, Hood loves to back into a short jumper. Improving his strength improves the space he can create when he backs a player down and allows him to get closer to the basket as well.

For Nance, improving his strength improves the screens he sets, thus improving the offensive efficacy.

Sexton (pick-and-rolls), Hood (pick-and-rolls and off-screen shots) and Korver (off-screen shots) are likely to rely heavily on the screen-setting of their bigs and will have the ball in their hands quite a bit.

Rebounds

In terms of crashing the glass, the Cleveland Cavaliers lost a great rebounder in LeBron, who averaged 8.6 rebounds per game last season and averages 7.4 rebounds per game for his career.

Nance is a solid rebounder (6.8 rebounds per game) because of his athleticism but should he get stronger, he would be better off fighting for boards against burly centers.

Hood only averaged 2.8 rebounds per game last season and 3.0 rebounds per game for his career but he’s slight and not an aggressive rebounder, so that’s unsurprising.

However, with the need to pick up his effort as a rebounder with the void left by LeBron and his affinity for starting fastbreaks, he would be best served by significantly improving upon his ability to crash the glass.

To that point, when pushes the break — which is rebounding tying into offense — being able to finish through contact better than before will be a great benefit for him and the team.

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*All stats gathered from www.basketball-reference.com