When the Cleveland Cavaliers traded for Kyle Korver back in January, there was a surge of excitement among the team’s fanbase. Korver then brought to the Cavs a terrific outside shooter, whom they envisioned to be a valuable asset in case they meet the Golden State Warriors again in the Finals.
Indeed, Cleveland crossed paths again with the Warriors back in June, but Korver was barely a factor throughout the Finals. He suddenly went cold from the outside, making just five of his 16 three-point attempts for a measly average of 31.3 percent. It was a performance that made the offseason tough for Korver, who knows he could’ve shot better and eased some of the load off the shoulders of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving on offense.
Speaking to reporters during Media Day, Korver opened up about that difficult part of his time with the Cavaliers and how he is feeling going into the new season. Per Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com:
“The end of the year hurt me more than any other year that I’ve probably been in,” said Korver, who signed a three-year, $22 million contract in July. “That hurt, for sure. It was motivating to come back to try to get better this summer and to want to come back to this team. I think there’s a renewed sense of urgency.”
That horrendous Finals performance is in Korver’s rear view mirror now, and the 36-year-old Creighton product would be better off using that as a motivation to bounce back.
Korver averaged 10.7 points and shot 48.5 percent from the three-point region in 35 regular season games with Cleveland last season. He’s one of the all-time greats when it comes to nailing long bombs so his confidence should be up moving forward.