Cleveland Cavaliers: Kyle Korver a natural selection to start

With Rodney Hood sidelined, and J.R. Smith’s continued indifferent form, the Cleveland Cavaliers made a wise move starting Kyle Korver.

Considering he has led the Cleveland Cavaliers in net rating and plus/minus among those who’ve been on the roster all season, it seems a no-brainer to insert Kyle Korver into the starting shooting guard slot.

With the newly acquired Rodney Hood sidelined with a back injury, and J.R. Smith‘s up-and-down season showing no signs of stabilizing, injecting Korver into the starting shooting guard slot seemed a logical step for a Cavaliers team coming off a nightmare double-header in Los Angeles.

Currently in his 15th season, Korver has done nothing to diminish his standing among the elite marksmen in the league. Playing all 67 games, Korver has been a picture of consistency in averaging 9.2 points in 21.4 minutes per game while shooting at an excellent 44.0 percent clip from 3-point range. Overall, Korver has been a +241 while on the court, while recording an exceptional net rating of +7.8.

Clearly, the key factor of moving Korver and his talents from the perimeter in the starting lineup is increasing his time spent on the court alongside LeBron James. Over the course of the season, Korver has averaged 12.7 minutes per game with James on the floor. It certainly comes as no surprise that Korver has shot 47.8 percent from long range with James on the floor, and 38.5 percent when this isn’t the case.

Inversely, Korver’s presence has also had a positive effect on James. Despite registering a net rating of just +0.1 through this season, James has posted a net rating of +11.2 when sharing the floor with Korver, but -5.7 when Korver is resting.

Which brings us to the Cavaliers’ most recent contest against the lottery-bound Phoenix Suns. Playing all 23 minutes alongside James, Korver more than stepped up to the plate in registering 22 points, which featured hitting 5-of-6 from 3-point range. As a result, it was no surprise that five of Korver’s six field goals for the game were assisted by James.

Following his first start for the season, Korver was naturally pleased with his contribution:

"“It went all right, I guess. I have no idea what’s going on. I don’t know if this is a one-game thing. I really have no idea. I told Ty [Tyronn Lue] I’m ready to do whatever he needs, just tell me before the game starts. So tonight, I think with Rodney still out, just trying a couple new things but I’m not making much of it.”"

Granted, this performance came against the lowly Suns, who are clearly hell-bent on securing the highest lottery selection possible and did not play center Tyson Chandler. Considering the problems the Cavaliers had in matching up with the bigs of the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers, this move from the Suns’ head coach Jay Triano seemed puzzling at best.

Having said that, Korver has performed proficiently all season, and the level of opposition should do nothing to diminish both his performance in this game and the season as a whole.

Next: 2017-18 Week 22 NBA Power Rankings

With a pair of road games against the Portland Trail Blazers and the Chicago Bulls to complete their current road trip, the Cavaliers are likely to continue with Korver in the starting lineup until Hood returns to a full bill of health. So for the meantime, both James and Korver can continue to enjoy the benefits of sharing the court with one another as the Cavaliers prepare for the postseason.