The Cleveland Cavaliers have the best record in the NBA by a good margin, but that’s not the only thing they’re leading the league in right now.
They’re currently tied for the highest points per game average (122.9) and rank No. 1 in both field goal percentage (50.5 percent) and 3-point field goal percentage (40.5 percent).
That level of efficiency seems unsustainable, but we’re almost at the midpoint of the regular season.
With that in mind, Grant Hughes of Bleacher Report said he believes that keeping up that level of efficient shooting is what could make or break the Cavs’ season, as their defense is good enough to hold down the fort even if they regress a little.
“Currently on pace to win 70-plus games, Cleveland will be just fine if it shoots the ball at league-average clips from this point on. Its top-10 defense will ensure a high floor. But nobody shoots the ball this well for a full campaign, and it’ll be interesting to see what happens when the Cavs’ months-long hot streak abates,” Hughes wrote.
He points out that players like Caris LeVert and Isaac Okoro seem to be overachieving.
They are shooting 44.5 percent and 44.8 percent from beyond the arc this season, respectively, much better than their previous career rates.
Also, the Cavaliers are shooting almost 2.0 percent better from downtown this season than the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Philadelphia 76ers when they led the league in 3-point shooting the two years prior.
At some point, there should be some regression to the mean. That’s just how stats and numbers work.
Then again, even if their scorching-hot shooting cools off a little, they still have enough resources to continue competing at the highest level.
The Cavs are the best team in all of basketball, and barring a disaster, that shouldn’t change much for the remainder of the regular season.
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