When LeBron James entered the NBA, the most apparent hole in his game was his shooting. But through countless hours of work, the once fading away form has turned into a more squared and fundamentally sound shot.
However, after peaking in 2012-2013 at 40.6%, his three-point accuracy has seen a downhill trend. This season, he did finish with a 52% field goal percentage, but his shots from 20-24 feet are only going in at a 29.5% success rate. In the first round of the playoffs, it has even went down to 28.6%.
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Most strategies against James has been to make him beat his defender by way of long jumpers. It’s not that he’s an atrocious shooter, but if you’re going to pick your poison then it has to be option “J”. If he is not converting, then you’ve done your part.
But the next headache would be his combination of elite court vision and extremely high basketball IQ. He easily locates teammates for better shot attempts.
In the first round series against the Detroit Pistons, the way coach Stan Van Gundy made his players defend James opened up an opportunity for Kyrie Irving to become the Cavs’ top scoring option, and he delivered. Kevin Love also found “amor” from beyond the arc, thanks to the defense being attracted by James and his kickout passes.
In rare fashion, James ended up not having to take the most shots and score the most points for an entire series, but they still swept their opponent.
The Atlanta Hawks are sure to deploy the same strategy on James to begin games as they conduct their own heat check on Cleveland’s best player. But if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world. However, he has probably seen every kind of defense thrown at him, so the pressure still won’t be on the Cavs superstar.
In an ESPN article by Brian Windhorst, LeBron James described his countermeasure to whatever defense he will face in the adjustment game that is the postseason.
I think one of my best strengths in the playoffs has been [being] able to make adjustments from game to game.
It also helps that his two other co-stars in Cleveland are also clicking at the right time, and the Cavs are entering the second round without any injuries.
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His shooting woes may be a letdown, but the problem doesn’t stop there for his opponents.