3 reasons the Cavs have been hurting with a key player sidelined

3 reasons Cavs are hurting without Dean Wade: 3-point shooting

The flip side of the coin for the Cleveland Cavaliers is that they rely on Dean Wade’s 3-point shooting. They have Lamar Stevens as a perimeter defender but he is not a shooter, hitting 26 percent of his career 3-pointers and accordingly not taking a high volume of shots. Isaac Okoro is shooting 18.2 percent from deep this season and 30.8 percent for his career. To get both defense and shooting on the court, the Cavs need Dean Wade.

Wade is shooting 50 percent of his 3-pointers this season, and while that will regress to the mean he looks the most confident he ever has letting it fly from outside. His 3-point attempt rate is up to a career-best 70.6 percent and his spacing has been crucial to a bench attack that has stretched opposing defenses to the max trying to guard a spread pick-and-roll with Kevin Love and Dean Wade among those on the perimeter.

Wade’s best shooting night came against the New York Knicks when he hit 6-of-8 from downtown, an electric shooting performance. Leave him to help on a Donovan Mitchell – Jarrett Allen pick-and-roll, and suddenly Wade is raining down an open 3-pointer. Help off of Stevens or Okoro and they are likely pumping against air and then driving into the teeth of the defense.

More games will be required to test Wade’s true caliber as a shooter, but his form looks great and his willingness to fire is just as much a boon as his accuracy. If he can keep shooting above 40 percent it unlocks something truly special for this Cavaliers attack.