Cleveland Cavaliers Have Finally Found Their Offensive Identity

After months of trying to figure out who they were and how they wanted to play, the Cleveland Cavaliers have discovered their true calling.

This is a three-point shooting team (in a three-point shooting league).

The Cavs are averaging NBA-playoff highs in makes (16.9), attempts (36.1) and success rate (46.6 percent), obliterating the Atlanta Hawks' second-rated (not second-rate) defense in the process.

While the three-ball was always going to be an asset, coach Tyronn Lue never mentioned it as part of their identity since taking over in late January. With the supreme offensive capabilities of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, the team too often forced isolation plays, tried unsuccessfully to post up Love and watched Irving's shooting numbers plummet.

Less than four short weeks ago, we questioned who the Cavs even were, noting an identity must be forged before a serious championship run could ensue.

Thankfully for Cleveland, we now know.

We've Been Here Before...Kind Of

This Cavaliers group resembles the 2014-15 version that also didn't truly find itself until the postseason.

During the playoffs last year, Cleveland came together following a 34-9 end to the regular season but was still constantly trying to mix parts and styles. Rotations were regularly experimented with. The offense and defense were both good, but neither was strong enough to carry the team by itself on any given night.

Disaster bred the team's identity, as losing both Love and Irving to shoulder and knee injuries respectively forced Cleveland's conversion to a slow-it-down-and-defend style.

Tristan Thompson became the starting power forward and Matthew Dellavedova the main point guard. Even J.R. Smith was sent to the bench in favor of the defensive-minded Iman Shumpert.

Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images

The Cavs knew they weren't going to blow teams out of the water offensively, and that was OK. Instead, they made opponents work for every basket, controlling the pace, even against the Golden State Warriors for much of their Finals matchup. In the end, a phenomenal talent disparity between the two rosters did Cleveland in.

This year, the Cavs never had that excuse.

What Cavs Wanted to Be...

"We have an identity. I think we play with a pace," Lue said from the moment he took control of the team earlier this year.

"Teams now are conscious about getting back and taking us out of transition. When we get out in transition early, teams struggle to stop us. I think our identity right now has been pushing the ball and pushing the pace, but we have to get back to our defensive mentality."

Lue talked about pace. The players talked about pace. The awkward part? Cleveland was, and remains, one of the NBA's slowest teams.

Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images

The Cavs finished the regular season with 95.48 possessions per 48 minutes, good for third-worst in the league, per NBA.com. The playoffs have been even more lethargic at 91.30, ranking near the bottom once again.

"I think our identity has to be defense," Lue said. "We have to continue to try and get stops because if we have a defensive identity we can get out and run in transition. That kind of opens everything for us. For us, we have to get back to our defensive mindset."

Another swing and a miss.

Cleveland has the worst defensive rating (106.7, per NBA.com) of any team still in the playoffs, which is interesting seeing as the Cavs are also the only team that has yet to suffer a loss. It's a step back from their regular-season rating of 102.3 and an alarmingly high rate considering they've only faced the Detroit Pistons (103.3 offensive rating, 15th in NBA) and Hawks (103.0, 18th).

Playing with pace isn't a must. In fact, it's exactly the trap a team such as the Warriors would want the Cavaliers to fall into. The defense has to be better, however, and it has a long way to catch up to a suddenly dynamic offense.

...And What They've Become

Even though they finished the regular season tied for second in three-point makes (10.7) and third in attempts (29.6), no one truly thought of Cleveland as an outside-shooting team.

Only Dellavedova and Smith finished above 40 percent from the outside. Both Irving (32.1 percent) and James (30.9) saw their success rates plummet versus their career numbers.

But a newfound commitment to ball movement and aggressive play has sparked a three-point barrage, one that's reaching historic levels.

"Our main objective is to be aggressive and attack," Lue said at the start of the playoffs. "We want to get downhill and get to the paint then kick out for threes.

"Our main focus is to attack the basket early and get out in transition with Kyrie and LeBron. When teams load up and protect the paint, we've got to spray it out for shots. I want our guys who are shooters to take those shots."

And shoot they have. Seemingly everyone has joined the party, as the Cavs have nailed almost half of their postseason attempts from deep.

Player	Reg. Season 3P%	Playoff 3P%	%Diff
Kyrie Irving	32.1	55.1	+23.0
LeBron James	30.9	33.3	+2.4
Kevin Love	36.0	41.7	+5.7
J.R. Smith	40.0	52.6	+12.6
Channing Frye	37.7	58.8	+21.1
Iman Shumpert	29.5	44.4	+14.9
Richard Jefferson	38.2	50.0	+11.8

These guys didn't just learn how to shoot overnight, so what gives?

The main reason is rhythm. Even great shooters will have trouble creating off the dribble (save for maybe Steph Curry and Smith). Success is often dictated by quality of look and shot style. This is where we see the change.

During the regular season, the Cavs attempted just 21.5 catch-and-shoot threes per game, which they converted at a respectable 38.6 percent rate, per NBA.com.

In seven postseason games, this average has climbed to 26.0 a night, or 30.9 percent of their entire offense. This commitment to swinging the ball and finding the open man has led to an incredible 48.9 percent success rate on catch-and-shoot opportunities.

Lue has stopped playing former starting center Timofey Mozgov altogether, going with a smaller, faster and better shooting lineup. Of his nine regular rotation members, only Thompson is unable to step out to the arc and fire.

Cleveland's 25 three-pointers in Game 2 against the Hawks set an NBA record for any regular or postseason game. Their 46.6 percent average, should it hold, would be the second-highest mark for a playoff team behind the 1985-86 Dallas Mavericks.

During Game 3, Cleveland played its first sustained period with both Love and Channing Frye on the floor in the ultimate act of floor-spacing. Frye responded with 27 points in his 28 minutes to lead all players.

Cleveland never quite nailed the whole pace thing Lue wanted, but he's sure to take this kind of success over a high-tempo sloppy offense. Having searched long and hard for an identity to call their own, the Cavaliers are officially a three-point juggernaut.

Greg Swartz is the Cleveland Cavaliers Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @CavsGregBR.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless cited. Stats via Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.