The Cleveland Cavaliers have managed to get themselves out of a 5-7 start to the season by fine-tuning some of the defensive aspects that had proved gutting to their success.
The Cavs ranked dead last in the league in three-point percentage against, allowing a league-worst 41.1 percent from deep — but during their recent five-game win streak, the wine-and-gold have managed to go from worst to the best in the league, allowing opponents to shoot only 31.3 percent from deep.
This short sample size can be the start of something the Cavs can aim to keep, but word to the wise — two of the five teams rank in the bottom third of the league in three-point shooting, making them inefficient by nature.
Out of the five teams, Detroit is the only team proved as a major perimeter threat, ranking sixth in the league in long-range artillery at 38.5 percent. The Pistons shot a healthy 13-of-30 (43.3 percent) against the Cavs, making their outings against the Dallas Mavericks and the Charlotte Hornets their main aid to holding teams to 31.3 percent over the five-game span.
More than anything, the Cavs will need consistency with this, as teams grow more and more reliant on their three-point prowess (them included) and could carve out huge leads if allowed to fire on all cylinders.
