5 Stats Defining Cleveland Cavaliers' Postseason

The Cleveland Cavaliers are once again on vacation working hard to stay fresh between long playoff series layoffs.

It's been eight up and eight down for Cleveland, which after a competitive opening round against the Indiana Pacers cruised past the Toronto Raptors.

While we await the winner of the Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics (currently 3-2 in Boston's favor) to see who the Cavs will dispose of next, there's plenty of time for reflection over the past eight games.

The following numbers may be surprising, nearly unbelievable or even expected, but they have all defined Cleveland's title defense thus far.

47.6% Three-Point Shooting, Minus Kyrie Irving

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The Cavaliers are the best three-point shooting team in the playoffs and could be even better if it weren't for their most talented offensive player.

As odd as that may seem, Kyrie Irving is the only Cavalier to shoot under 40 percent from deep (28.1 percent). Irving is 16-of-57, while all other Cavs are 99-of-208.

Cleveland leads all playoff teams in makes per game (14.4) and conversion rate (43.4 percent). Among players with at least 10 three-point attempts or more, Deron Williams ranks first at 60 percent shooting from outside the arc.

"That's what we do," Cavs head coach Tyronn Lue said, via Cleveland.com's Chris Fedor. "We shoot threes. We play fast. We want to push the tempo, and we have great three-point shooters. That's the makeup of our team. That's how we want to play. That's just how we're built."

General manager David Griffin knows that LeBron James thrives when surrounded by shooters. Since James signed in 2014, Griffin has traded for Kevin Love, J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Channing Frye and Kyle Korver. All five are shooting better than 40 percent from deep this postseason.

James' ability to fire passes all over the court has led to an NBA-best 49 percent mark on catch-and-shoot opportunities. The freshly eliminated Utah Jazz sit at a distant second at 43 percent.

Only five teams in NBA history have recorded at least 100 made three-pointers while knocking down at least 40 percent of their attempts, led by the 2004-05 Phoenix Suns squad that converted at 43.6 percent.

Cleveland, already on the list with its 40.6 percent mark from a year ago, could surpass the Suns for the best outside shooting team in history.

30.2 Points Per 100 Possessions: Tristan Thompson's Defensive Difference

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

While LeBron James is clearly the Cavaliers' most valuable player, Tristan Thompson can make quite the case for No. 2.

Thompson's game was built for the playoffs, as he's an offensive rebounding machine who can go from guarding opposing centers to switching onto point guards.

Cleveland's defense lives and dies by Thompson's presence.

With the 26-year-old on the court, the Cavaliers' defensive rating is a sparking 96.5, a mark that would have led the NBA this season. When Thompson sits, however, this rating spikes to 126.7, or nearly 17 points worse than the Los Angeles Lakers' league-bottom defense. That's a difference of 30.2 points per 100 possessions for a team that only averages 98.5 of them a game, per NBA.com.

While not a huge shot-blocking threat, Thompson challenges everything from layups to three-pointers. He's holding opponents to 53.8 percent shooting from within six feet (down 6.8 percent from their season average) and a minuscule 18.5 percent from deep (down 17.8 percent, per NBA.com.)

"Over time you play against guys so many times you get a knack for what they do and you can time their shots," Thompson told Bleacher Report earlier this season. "For me, you guys always say in the media the area we need improvement in is rim protection, so I kind of take the challenge and provide that for this team."

Now switching to blitzing schemes to help negate the impact of DeMar DeRozan and others this postseason, Thompson's ability to move his feet on the perimeter and still recover to his man make him invaluable to Cleveland's defensive plan.

66.2%: Cavs' Shooting Success off Kyrie Irving Passes

Kyrie Irving collected just 12 total assists in the first round against the Indiana Pacers, including zero in a Game 4 win. It marked the first time Irving failed to register a single helper since LeBron James issued a warning to him in their initial season together.

How did Irving respond? Only with a playoff career-high 10 assists in a Game 1 win over the Toronto Raptors, a remarkable difference that we asked him about.

"I don't go out there with the intent to have zero assists; sometimes it just happens that way," Irving said. "Tonight, to hear that's the playoff high, obviously that's got to change moving forward."

"Whether I have zero assists or 10 assists ... there's no implement or focus going in that I need to make more plays or get my teammates involved. I'm going to do that anyway just by the style I play. Attracting guys coming off screens when I'm taking two on the basketball and then making plays on the backside. Sometimes the assist may not fall in my hands, it may fall to one of my teammates. I'm fine with that."

After averaging just 3.0 assists against the Pacers, Irving dished out 8.5 helpers a night while playing Toronto. It's the efficiency of his teammates after receiving these passes that's been remarkable, however.

Fellow Cavs are shooting 66.2 percent off Irving passes, 43-of-65 overall. They've even been slightly better when attempting threes, connecting on 66.6 percent (22-of-33) off Irving assists.

While Irving will always be a scorer at heart, his increased playmaking ability has been huge for Cleveland.

32-4: Record in East Playoffs Since LeBron's Return

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Is the Eastern Conference weak, or have the Cavaliers just been this good?

Since LeBron James returned in 2014, the East has resembled the Washington Generals to the Cavaliers' Globetrotters year after year.

Now, Cleveland has a chance to make history, per Jason Lloyd of The Athletic.

"In the three postseasons now since LeBron James has been back in Cleveland, the Cavs are an overwhelming 32-4 against the rest of the East. That includes six sweeps in eight series. With just the conference finals left before the Finals, the Cavs have a chance to make history. No team in NBA history has ever qualified for the playoffs three consecutive seasons and lost four games or [fewer], according to Elias Sports Bureau."

This streak has included 10 games without Kevin Love (dislocated shoulder in 2015), a sweep of the 60-win Atlanta Hawks in the 2015 East Finals and the most recent dismissal of the Toronto Raptors, the runner-up in the East a season ago.

As for Cleveland's four losses? Two came against the Chicago Bulls in the East semis in 2015. The first when David Blatt foolishly decided to start Mike Miller's remains over Tristan Thompson the game after Love was sidelined. The second? Derrick Rose's buzzer-beating bank shot in the same series.

The Cavs' only other losses were on the road in Games 3 and 4 against the Raptors last season.

With Cleveland rolling, don't be surprised if it disposes of the Boston Celtics or Washington Wizards in the minimum number of games as well, making history in the process.

34, 9, 7 and 55

John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

We could fill an entire column with stats from LeBron James. He's been that unbelievable.

Now in year No. 14, James is likely going to reach his eighth NBA Finals appearance, including seven in a row. He hasn't missed the playoffs since 2005 and has never suffered a first-round defeat.

The sheer numbers he's putting up aren't just eye-popping; they're remarkably efficient as well.

Through eight games, James is averaging 34.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.1 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.5 blocks. He's doing all of this on 55.7 percent shooting from the field and 46.8 percent shooting from deep. The only players in NBA playoff history to even average 30, seven and seven while shooting 50 percent or better? James, in 2008-09 with the Cavs, and Michael Jordan in 1988-89.

"LeBron changes the dynamics of everything. He's the hub of everything," Toronto Raptors head coach Dwane Casey said of James. "Controlling that situation first and then figuring out how to get out to the shooters with a guy like him who is dynamic enough. He understands where everyone is. He's a quarterback, he's a point guard, he's a power forward, he's a small forward, he's a shooting guard, he's everything."

Don't think James can keep this up? Besides the fact he's arguably the fittest player in the NBA, he'll have only played eight games from April 9 through May 15, a span of 35 days. For all the talk of limiting his minutes in the regular season, James is receiving all the rest he needs now and more.

At only 140 points behind Jordan for first place on the all-time playoff scoring list, James only continues to make an argument for greatest player we've ever seen.

Stats via Basketball Reference and NBA.com and are accurate through May 10.

Greg Swartz is the Cleveland Cavaliers Lead Writer for Bleacher Report.