Cavaliers by the Numbers: The End of the Regular Season Edition

Mo shot 44.2%, which was his lowest percentage since '05-'06 when he shot 42.4%.

Antawn Jamison shot 48.5% as a Cavalier, which was better than the 45% he was shooting in Washington (on more shots) this season.  He averaged 15.8 points per game, which was down from the 20.5 points he was scoring in Washington . . . where he was often the featured scorer.  Most of the rest of his numbers are exactly the same as in Washington . . . except free throw percentage.  As a Wizard he shot 70% (and 73% in his career).  As a Cavalier, he shot 50.6%.

#5.) The Cavs finished third in the NBA in field goal percentage at 48.5%.  Only the Phoenix Suns (49.2%) and the Utah Jazz (49.1%) were better.

The Cavs were second in the NBA in FG% differential, meaning the separation between what they shot and what their opponents did.  The Cavs differential was +6.5%, which was second only to the Orlando Magic's 7.5%.  (That's impressive.  And a little scary.)

Cleveland allowed 44.2% shooting from their opponents.  That's third in the league, behind Orlando (43.8%) and the Miami Heat (43.9%).

#6.) The Cavs ended the season second in the NBA in 3-point percentage at 38.1%.  The Phoenix Suns were #1 at 41.2%.  (The Orlando Magic were fourth at 37.5%.)

Technically, Z was the Cavs best 3-point shooter at 47.8%, but that was only 11-for-23.  Daniel Gibson probably deserves that distinction (heck, he deserves something for his season).  He shot 47.7% (second in the NBA), or 71-for-149.  Mo was third at 42.9% (ninth in the NBA), followed by AP at 41.4% (12th in the NBA).  Antawn was 34.2%, LeBron was 33.3%.

Cleveland's opponents shot the 3-ball at 34.7%.  That makes them 10th in the league at defending the three.

#7.) J.J. Hickson growth update:  Last month, we looked at how J.J.'s rebounding numbers have improved, month-to-month, this season.  That's good because - while scoring is always a sign of success - for J.J., rebounding seems like a better indication of his improvement.

Here's an updated breakdown of J.J.'s burgeoning awesomeness by month:

• October**:  1.3 pts, 1.3 rebs, 0.0 blks, 50% shooting in 8.3 minutes per game
• November:  9.6 pts, 3.8 rebs, 0.5 blks, 67.5% shooting in 22.5 minutes per game
• December:  6.5 pts, 4.1 rebs, 0.3 blks, 60% shooting in 18.4 minutes per game
• January:  6.3 pts, 5.8 rebs, 0.7 blks, 79.2% shooting in 20.1 minutes per game
• February:  10.3 pts, 4.2 rebs, 0.4 blks, 68.4% shooting in 20.1 minutes per game
• March:  11.7 pts, 6.0 rebs, 0.6 blks, 55.6% shooting in 24.4 minutes per game
• April:  10.9 pts, 8.0 rebs, 0.7 blks, 50.8% shooting in 26.6 minutes per game

**Only four games and 33 total minutes played.

#8.) If the playoffs are anything like the regular season with regard to free throw shooting . . . it's totally understandable for your heart-rate to dramatically change when a Cavs player steps to the line.  Here's a quick guide to the Cavs' FT percentages, so you know how much to sweat:

• Mo - 89.4%

• Delonte - 81.0%
• Jamario - 80.0%
• AP - 78.9%

• LeBron - 76.7%
• Zydrunas - 74.3%

• Jawad - 71.1%
• Boobie - 69.4%
• J.J. - 68.1%

• Anderson - 66.3%

• Leon - 58.7%
• Antawn - 50.6%
• Shaq - 49.6%

The Cavs shot 72.0% at the line this season, which was LAST in the NBA.  But the good news is, the second-worst team was the Magic, who shot free throws at a 72.4% clip.  The best free throw-shooting team, the Dallas Mavericks, shot 81.6%.

#9.) The Cavs were sixth in the NBA with an offensive efficiency rating (points scored per 100 possessions) of 111.2.  There were seventh in the NBA with a defensive efficiency rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) of 104.1.

Orlando was fourth offensively (111.4) . . . third defensively (103.3).

Atlanta was second offensively (111.9) . . . 13th defensively (106.7).

Boston was 15th offensively (107.7) . . . fifth defensively (103.8).

Chicago was 27th offensively (103.5) . . . 11th defensively (105.3).

L.A. (Lakers) was 11th offensively (108.8) . . . fourth defensively (103.7).

[The Phoenix Suns were #1 offensively . . . the Charlotte Bobcats were #1 defensively.]

#10.) And now, for fan stats!  The Cavs sold out every home game this season, which placed them second in the NBA in attendance . . . behind, ironically, the Chicago Bulls.  It's the first time the Cavs have sold out a complete season, and it boosts their home sell-out streak to 77 games.

And when Cleveland fans can't get tickets to the Q, they watch at home.

According to NBA.com:

"The Cavaliers continue to be the NBA's most watched team, leading the league this season in overall average attendance (home and road combined) and TV viewership (#1 for local TV ratings).

"[As of last week], through 78 locally and nationally broadcast games on FOX Sports Ohio, TNT, ESPN and ABC this season, the Cavaliers have an overall local TV average rating of 10.5, which equates to over 500,000 people watching each game.  Often, when games are broadcast locally and nationally, the local viewership total is well over 800,000.

"For the 66 games broadcast on FOX Sports Ohio, the Cavaliers average rating is 8.66, which stands as the NBA’s top rated local game broadcast rating."

It sounds like Cleveland is turning itself into one of the NBA's so-called "major markets."