Cleveland Cavaliers: What’s next for the NBA’s most surprising team?

Will it last?

Can the Cavaliers continue to play at this high of a rate? Are all of these improvements real, or is this simply a fluke hot start to the season?

The Cavs efficiency has dropped off HARD since the first three games. An average of 122.3 points per game has plummetted to just 93.6 with over a 10 percent drop in 3-point accuracy. This has leveled them out to about what you would have expected heading into the season.

We have seen what they are capable of at their best. Sexton and Garland are still playing at an elite level – but the rest of the team, particularly Cedi Osman, has regressed significantly. Osman began the year shooting 9-for-17 from deep, only to hit just 4-of-19 attempts since then.

The team in general has struggled to create offense – much of which is due to the loss of some key players. Due to a lack of shot-creating outside of their two guards, the Cavaliers are posting up more than any other team in the NBA, with one of the worst success rates in the league.

The constant post-ups serve their purpose. It slows the game down and allows roughly a 50/50 chance for Drummond or McGee to score. However, this won’t be enough to help them compete against better teams – and the Cavaliers are desperately waiting for creators like Kevin Love and Kevin Porter Jr. to return.

The Cavs have shown both their basement and ceiling in the first few weeks of the season, but what will their middle ground be? It’s hard to predict what a normal game from the Cavs will look like this year. It’s still too early, and until they get their full lineup back, we really just won’t know what to expect.