Cavaliers’ Offensive Juggernaut Starts with Decision No Defense Can Handle

LeBron James doesn’t want you to label his Cleveland Cavaliers as a three-point shooting team, despite their historic numbers this postseason.

He’s also not willing to call the Cavs a paint-oriented squad either, even though toasted the Toronto Raptors for a postseason-high 56 interior points in a Game 1, 115-84 beatdown

“I keep telling you guys every single day, we’re not a jump-shooting team,” James said after Game 1. “You guys kept looking at me crazy about it. We’re not a jump-shooting team. We’re a balanced team, and whatever the game dictates, we adjust to that.”

Now a franchise-best 9-0 to start the postseason, the Cavaliers’ No. 1 ranked offense and newfound balance are proving impossible to stop. 

Getting Downhill

Cleveland’s entire offense is predicated on paint penetration, primarily accomplished by James and Kyrie Irving.

Getting downhill, as head coach Tyronn Lue often calls it, means a drive by one of his star players that results in an easy two points at the rim or an open outside opportunity.

“I think we always want to play inside-out, and when Kyrie and LeBron and Kevin those guys are attacking the basket, it opens up the three-point shot for us because guys are helping,” Lue said.

James and Irving represent two of the NBA’s most difficult covers, and both require extra attention when they get into the paint. James is averaging 23.6 points and 6.9 assist this postseason while converting 59.1 percent of his shots from inside the arc. Irving leads the Cavs with 24.7 points to go along with 5.4 assists and a scorching 52.7 percent success rate from three.

Stopping both is the dilemma the Raptors now face, one that both the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks failed to accomplish in the first and second rounds.

“We want to push the tempo; we want to move the ball from side to side and attack,” James said. With myself and Ky, we love to live in the paint. We love to attack, and then when the defense collapses, we’re going to spread out to our shooters.”

Pack the Paint…

…and the Cavs will fire away endlessly from the …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com