The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of a historic start. They've already surpassed a franchise record for the best start to the season, currently hold the sixth longest season-opening win streak in league history, and could very well be 20-0 by the start of December. That is if a highly-anticipated showdown with the defending champions goes Cleveland's way when they play the Celtics on the road in an NBA Cup game on Nov. 19.
But for right now, the Cavaliers are the darlings of the league. They've won close contests, like a pair of victories over the Bucks that was won by a total of three points. Cleveland's also blown out lesser competitors, like the 30-point win against the Raptors in their first game of the season. No one could've predicted that the Cavs would start this hot, and yet here we are. In an effort to explain how they got here, here's three factors that have played into Cleveland's impressive winning streak.
Red-hot 3-point shooting
The Cavaliers are middle of the pack in terms of 3s taken per game, literally they sit 15th in the league (37.2). But they're making them at a scorching 41.2% clip, which ranks first. This number isn't likely to hold, especially when you have someone like Isaac Okoro shooting 48.5% from deep. Okoro's developed into a decent 3-point shooter after shooting 29% from deep in his rookie season, but he's a low-volume shooter, not someone who instills fear in opponents when you leave him open. Darius Garland is also unlikely to continue shooting 44.9% from downtown, and specifically 39.5% from 3-point range off the bounce. But that's how the Cavaliers have been winning games. They've got four guys shooting over 36% from deep on 4+ attempts per game. That's the type of shooting that wins championships in June, but we'll see if that holds over the course of the season.
What likely will hold from Cleveland's hot shooting stretch is the number of wide-open 3s they're getting. The Cavs get off 20.3 wide-open 3s a game. That number ranks ninth, but they're making those 3s at an insane 49.6% clip. That's due to all the drive and kicks initiated by Donovan Mitchell and Garland, and their teammates are finishing the job when they get the ball on the perimeter. This isn't dissimilar to what the Cavs were doing under JB Bickerstaff last season because, with two guards who command a ton of attention when they drive to the rim, your team is going to get a ton of wide-open looks, but the Cavs are knocking them down at a ridiculous rate right now.
Cavaliers 3-point shooting on wide-open attempts
| 3PA/G | 3P% | |
|---|---|---|
2024-25 | 20.3 | 49.6% |
2023-24 | 17.2 | 39.6% |
The Cavs have been making teams pay out on the 3-point line, and while that number will ebb and flow over the season, if they encounter a cold shooting stretch, they have this next factor to rely on that they didn't have before.
Evan Mobley: an offensive hub
My colleague James Herbert wrote a fantastic piece on Mobley's offensive ascension, and in it Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson revealed that 70% of his interview with the team prior to getting hired last summer was talking about how he would use Mobley unlock the 2021 lottery pick's offensive game. Through the first three seasons of Mobley's career, he became an elite defender, not just elite, but a Defensive Player of the Year mainstay type of defender. He was efficient on offense, averaging 15.6 points in three seasons, but lacked aggression to really make opponents change their defensive tactics.
Through 13 games this season, Mobley and the Cavaliers are making defenders sweat. Atkinson has given Mobley more control of the offense, he's bringing the ball up, orchestrating things in transition and perhaps most eyebrow raising, running inverted pick and rolls where he's the ball handler, not the screener. It's allowed Mobley to showcase some of his handles while taking advantage of mismatches, whether that's someone too small to keep him out of the paint or a big man who is too slow to stay in front of him. Mobley may have a slender frame, but he's capable of fighting through contact for a foul.
As a result, Mobley's almost doubled the amount of drives he had per game last season, and he's become more efficient when he gets downhill, too.
Mobley's increased efficiency on drives per game
| Drives/G | FG% | |
|---|---|---|
2024-25 | 7.8 | 54.5% |
2023-24 | 4.7 | 47.8% |
2022-23 | 3.6 | 43.3% |
2021-22 | 3.5 | 38.9% |
Having a nearly 7'0 forward-center who can also handle the ball has given the Cavaliers a new wrinkle to their offense to start the season, and so far, teams haven't quite figured out how to slow them or Mobley down.
Slow and steady pace a thing of the past
In each of Bickerstaff's five seasons with the Cavaliers, the team ranked the following in pace:
- 2019-20: 23rd
- 2020-21: 25th
- 2021-22: 25th
- 2022-23: 30th
- 2023-24: 24th
In 13 games with Atkinson at the helm, the Cavaliers rank 10th. The messaging has been clear, this team is going to get out and run. Quicker pace isn't always indicative of a good team, just look at the Bulls, they have the fastest pace in the league and yet rank 23rd on offense. But Cleveland's faster pace has them touting the second-best offense in the league. They're playing quick and yielding positive results. There's no more bleeding the shot clock out before running into a set play. The Cavaliers are getting up the floor and immediately running actions.
That change in philosophy is a better use of someone like Mitchell's talents, who thrives off of using his speed to force the defense into tough decisions. Cleveland's not moving the ball quite like that of a Golden State or Indiana, two teams that waste no time whipping the ball around on offense. But the Cavs are making quicker decisions on offense and not wasting as much time, and it's forcing teams to change the scouting report on them.
After a second round playoff exit at the hands of the Celtics that highlighted the gulf of distance between the two teams, Cleveland has started out this season closing that gap. They've got the best record in the league, and even if it's just 13 games, they look like a team poised to make a deep postseason run.
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