SALT LAKE CITY: Kyrie Irving put up 23 shots in Monday’s loss to the Utah Jazz, but apparently that wasn’t enough. Irving returned to the court after the game was over for a shooting session that lasted nearly 30 minutes.
As the Cavaliers continue to march toward a franchise record for most 3-pointers made in a season, they’re doing it with some of their usual 3-point shooters struggling through miserable seasons. It’s a strange anomaly in a Cavs season that oftentimes has made little sense.
“The style of basketball we play with LeBron [James] and Kyrie pretty much making all the plays for us, guys are going to get open shots and open 3s,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “You’ve got to be able to make them.”
Irving’s 1-of-9 performance from 3 on Monday left him buried at 31.4 percent for the season, tied for 109th in the league among qualified players after he tied for 11th in 3-point shooting last season. A former 3-point champion, the long-distance shot has been the final piece missing from Irving’s game following his return from knee surgery.
But he’s far from alone.
James is shooting 29 percent on 3-pointers, his lowest mark since his rookie season. Kevin Love is mired in a 5-of-31 slump on 3-pointers that predates the All-Star break. It has dropped his season percentage to .343, his lowest mark since the 3-point shot truly became part of his game. Even Iman Shumpert, acquired last season with the hope of becoming a 3-and-D player, is shooting a career-worst .304 from deep.
Yet the Cavs keep firing away. Their 28.8 3-point attempts per game rank fourth in the league behind the Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors and Charlotte Hornets. They went even higher on this recently concluded West Coast trip, averaging a whopping 39.5 attempts over the four games.
All of the attempts means the Cavs are on pace to set a franchise mark for 3-pointers in a season thanks to Matthew Dellavedova and J.R. Smith, whose 164 3-pointers this year already rank third in team history. If he stays healthy, Smith seems destined to break Wes Person’s mark of 192, set 13 years ago before the 3-point shot took over the game.
James typically has no issue with the number of 3s the Cavs shoot, often calling this a “make or miss league.” Even James conceded Monday, however, the Cavs have to start looking for other shots when the long balls aren’t falling.
“There’s a fine line,” he said. “I think in the first half (against the Jazz), we had great looks. You have to sometimes recognize that it’s not going down, try to get into the paint a little bit more and create some opportunities where you get at the rim.”
The Cavs were terrific shooting 3-pointers at Staples Center, uniquely becoming the second team in history to make at least 15 3-pointers in consecutive games in the same building. Of course, it came against two different opponents, but it was historic nonetheless.
All of that went away Monday against the Jazz, which sent Irving back to the court looking for answers.
“I just had to shoot my way out of it,” he said. “I had a lot of great shots, they just didn’t fall. I feel like I would have put my team in a different position if I just made a few more shots.”
Irving had plenty of shots — not just 3-pointers — rattle in and out Monday, which makes knowing what to work on even harder.
“I would rather [miss] left or right than have six in-and-outs because that way, you know what you have to fix,” he said. “But for me it’s just continuing to shoot and feel good about it.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at www.ohio.com/cavs. Follow him on Twitter www.twitter.com/JasonLloydABJ.