The Cavs look nearly unstoppable. They have a record of 23-4 and remain the top team in the league up to this point of the season. The Cavs lost to the Miami Heat 122-113 before an extensive break due to missing the knockout round of the NBA Cup. Now, Cleveland is on a two-game winning streak as they beat the Washington Wizards and the Brooklyn Nets. Those two games were added to their regular season schedule after the Atlanta Hawks won Group C during the group phase of the in-season tournament.
The Cavaliers are in a great spot and it looks like they have a legitimate chance at being a contender. Could this be their year?
Cleveland is playing well and there are stats to back that up. Besides having the best record in the league, the Cavs are second in points. They average 121.5 points. The Memphis Grizzlies are ahead of them at 122.1. Cleveland also has the highest field goal percentage in the league, as they shoot around 50.4 percent. The Cavaliers are also first in three-point percentage, as they shoot nearly 40 percent. They also move the ball well, as they are eighth in the league in assists at 28.2 per game. From an individual perspective, the Cavaliers also have some standout stats. Jarett Allen is second in the league when it comes to field goal percentage. He is an efficient 69.5 percent. The Cavs also have something special when it comes to making three-pointers.
When it comes to three-point percentage, the Cavs have three players in the top 15. Isaac Okoro is now second in this category, as he shoots 49.2 percent from deep. He is starting to truly look like a 3-and-D guy whose hard work at improving in that area (long-range shooting) is starting to pay off. Caris LeVert is fourth in three-point percentage as he shoots 48.8 percent. LeVert continues to move up the list due to performances like his game against Brooklyn. He made six three-pointers and finished the game with 19 points. All of his points came from long range with the exception of a free throw. Ty Jerome is 12th on the list and shoots 44.7 percent. Cleveland is knocking down shots and their offense is clicking the way a contending team is supposed to. And the beauty of it is that it is a team effort that does not fall solely on their top players.
Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland finished last night’s game with 18 points and 11 points respectively. LeVert had his strong game and Georges Niang nearly had a double-double with 17 points and nine rebounds. Okoro had a solid game with 12 points. Can Mitchell be the closer for the Cavs? Absolutely. But games like the win over Brooklyn show what they can do as a team from the opening tip to the final buzzer. They are also doing this without Max Strus, who was supposed to return against the Wizards but remains out. So, imagine what this team will do when he does return and they are at their full strength.
The Cavs are on top of the world and as they rest up some more before their next game, they truly look like the team to beat this year.
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