3 reasons Lauri Markkanen should start for the Cavs at small forward

3 reasons Lauri Markkanen should start for Cavs: Shooting Reputation

Lauri Markkanen came into the NBA as a heralded shooter, a seven-footer with such a smooth shooting stroke that he was billed as the next Dirk Nowitzki. He shot 42.3 percent in college at Arizona and set sky-high expectations upon entering the league.

The reality has been something less than the hope, however. Only once has Markkanen shot better than 36.2 percent from 3-point range, and for his career he is a 36.4 percent shooter from deep. Our fellow FanSided Cleveland blog, Factory of Sadness, recently made the case for Markkanen to start over Wade, and they cited that”Markkanen is historically a better shooter than Wade from three” which seems like an obvious statement. It’s also not true, as Wade is a 36.5 percent shooter from deep.

What is true is that Markkanen has a better reputation as a shooter, which is perhaps what FoS was getting at, and what defenses still respond too. Defenders fight hard not to leave Markkanen open, afraid that he will burn them with his perimeter shooting. He is a willing shooter, for sure, and that brings gravity of its own. For now, teams will defend Markkanen more diligently on the perimeter than someone like Dean Wade.

There are compelling reasons to start both Lauri Markkanen and Dean Wade. We won’t make the decision here for the Cavs coaching staff, but we will also point out that this is unlikely to be a decision they are yet to make. Markkanen seems like a near-lock to start, so the team has to hope the above points propel those lineups to success. If not, perhaps the Cavs revisit the question.