5. Strong Three-Point Defense
Having been buried under a barrage of Golden State three-pointers in an embarrassing January 18 rout, the Cavaliers know full well that not focusing on this aspect will be fatal to any title hopes. They nearly found out versus Detroit, who connected on 63 percent of their first-half bombs before cooling off to 38 percent after the break.
Even that latter number is too high if Cleveland wants to shut down a team like the Warriors. Success has followed the Cavs this year when they keep their opponents under 35 percent in this area, with a 37-8 record looking much better than the pedestrian 21-17 mark above that number.
Next: Avoiding Slow Fourth-Quarter Starts
