5 reasons Cavaliers will sweep their way to NBA Finals

4. Ball movement and scorching hot three-point shooting

Aided by the simple fact of everyone finding their best shooting stroke at the same time, this is a product of the team’s improved ball movement.

It’s no secret that the Cavaliers have struggled with their chemistry at times this season. Kevin Love has been used in a spot-up, catch-and-shoot role rather than an elite post threat, complaints over Irving’s lack of passing has risen, and the team’s inconsistencies on the court were easily cause for concern.

As the regular season wound down, though, and as they’ve take the playoffs by storm, those issues have been throw aside. Love is still spotting up, but he’s receiving so many great looks from deep and the elbow, averaging 16.5 field goal attempts and 18.9 points per game (four extra shots in comparison to the regular season). On top of that, the Cavaliers are ranked 2nd among all teams in the playoffs with 23.9 assists per game.

As Ian Levy pointed out at Nylon Calculus, the Cavaliers are burying threes so fast that they already have the 34th highest total (134) of any team in a single playoff run in NBA history. Of course, the highlight is their record-breaking, 25-three performance in Game 2 against the Hawks, giving them the most threes in any game in history. And seeing as the Cavs have achieved such a ridiculous overall total in only eight games, the possibility of them breaking the Warriors’ all-time record for a playoff run of 240 (set last season) is nearing.

For there to be a comparison with the most prolific set of three-point shooters we’ve seen, it’s pretty clear just how hot the Cavaliers are and how much more fluid their ball movement and selfless play has become.

LeBron is delivering pin-point passes with ease to set the pace, and the ball flies around the perimeter until they find an open man. Everyone is getting involved, too, with backup big Channing Frye averaging 22.7 minutes over the last three games with a 27-point, seven-three performance in Game 3 against the Hawks as an example of that.

Ultimately, this shot chart for the playoffs so far says it all (via NBA.com). They’ve been so hot from behind the arc that their three-point percentage of 51 is higher than their shooting percentage (48) within three feet of the basket.

Yes, the shooting is going to cool down a bit. Love won’t hit eight threes every night and they probably won’t be smashing their new game-record of 25 anytime soon. But that doesn’t matter. Because the stars are still clicking, the increased selflessness is there, and the ball movement is better than ever.

Right now, the Cavaliers have every offensive ingredient to sweep their way to the NBA Finals and bother their opponents at the last stage more than we’d have expected a few months ago.

Next: 3. Playoff Kyrie is here