Ult Cavs: Can the Cleveland Cavaliers win the Eastern Conference if their 3-point defense doesn't improve?

The Cleveland Cavaliers have NBA Finals aspirations. Their offense is good enough to get there. But can the Cavs defense -- which ranks bottom 10 in almost every important 3-point category -- hold up its end of the bargain? The lottery-bound Memphis Grizzlies had a chance at history Monday night. Forget the final score — the Cavs won 142-126, claiming their 50th victory and securing homecourt advantage in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs. Forget who the Cavs left back in Cleveland — without six rotational players, including star guards Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. Forget that it was the second game of a back-to-back, with the team traveling into a different time zone late Sunday night. The Cavaliers’ wretched 3-point defense was the story Monday night. It’s been a problematic theme this season. And it could be their fatal flaw during an impending playoff run. Memphis, an organization in turmoil that has been forced to use 33 different players this season — tied for the most in NBA history — made a franchise record 29 triples against Cleveland’s flimsy perimeter defense. Despite fouling on purpose to keep extending the game and jacking a few more in the final minute, the undermanned Grizzlies fell one 3-pointer short of setting a new league mark. Boston. Milwaukee. And ... Memphis? These Grizzlies? With quite possibly the league’s most nondescript roster? A team that purposely limited the minute load of its best available players? They are now part of an exclusive triumvirate with 29 made triples in a single game. “Incredible shooting performance,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said afterward. “Give them credit.” Well, yeah. There’s that. But the Grizzlies, with 13 names on the injury report, can also thank the Cavs for over-helping on drivers, lackluster rotations, sloppy closeouts and half-hearted contests. Many of the early Memphis looks (it made 10 3-pointers in a sizzling first quarter) were the equivalent of warm-up jumpers, giving a depleted roster plenty of confidence and allowing the Grizzlies to find an early rhythm that lasted nearly 48 minutes. The Grizzlies scored 126 points — their most since March 10, a night when the roster looked wildly different. They went 45 of 94 (47.8%) from the field and 29 of 59 (49.1%) from deep. All nine players who suited up buried at least one triple. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.