Efficiency is a word that has inundated the lexicon of the modern NBA.
Offensive efficiency, defensive efficiency, this player is awesome because he’s so efficient – it’s everywhere.
Efficiency is also part of what separated LeBron James from everyone else. It is was one of his vast skills, but it always stuck out. He finished at the rim with the accuracy of the best big men and developed his jump shot to the point he could match the marksmanship of the game’s best guards and wings.
It feels a little funny to bring this up the day after this happened:
Yet, one of the reasons the Cleveland Cavaliers were in that position is that before that shot, James was a putrid 9-29 from the field.
This is what his shot chart looked like from Sunday afternoon’s Game 4 victory:
Red is bad, yellow is meh, and green is good. Not exactly what you’re looking for.
Here’s James’ shot chart from the entire eight-game Cleveland playoff run:
There’s at least a little bit of green in this one, but still way too much red.
Contrast that with what James did during the regular season, which was better, yet not at his usual standards:
Look at how much improved the regular season shot chart is compared to the playoff shot chart. This was LeBron’s worst shooting season since 2007-’08. For your typical NBA player, this kind of scoring would be considered terrific, but we’re not talking about your typical player.
In four of his previous five seasons, James’s true shooting percentage (which takes into account free throws and threes) has been over 60%. This year it dipped to .577.
James’s TS% was a scorching hot .668 during last season’s Miami Heat run to the NBA Finals.
His career playoff TS% comes in at .573.
Right now he’s sitting at a miserable .483 for the 2015 playoffs.
Lets forget about potential long-term ramifications, and just consider it an extended slump. His jumper is a mess –he’s shooting 15% from three (6-39) and not finishing around the rim the way he’s been capable of for the majority of his career.
With the current condition of the Cavaliers’ roster – Kevin Love out, Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert hurting – they need better from James.
Making a jumper at the buzzer masked the issue for one game, but James not playing to his typical levels is leaving much up to chance.
It was just 48 hours before the Cavs’ Game 4 win that luck bounced the other way. LeBron missed a potential go-ahead layup with 23 seconds left in Game 3, and after a sequence of events, the contest finished with Derrick Rose having his special playoff moment.
*
The Cavaliers are playing a dangerous game, letting the Bulls hang around as they are in this 2-2 series.
We’re here because James got to add to his extensive list of clutch playoff moments, laughing in the face of those who amazingly still say he’s “unclutch!”, and other forms of sheer nonsense.
What Cleveland really needs in order to accomplish its foremost goal is for James to get back to playing like himself.
In a single word – efficiency.
