With Shaq and a beefed-up bench, there's plenty to like about the Cleveland Cavaliers: Windhorst analysis

s the Cavs prepare to face the improved Memphis Grizzlies Tuesday night, they are 15-5 and currently on a four-game winning streak. That has them one game behind the Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics for the best record in the Eastern Conference and a 5.5-game lead in the Central Division over the Milwaukee Bucks.

That is two games behind the pace from last season, when the Cavs were 17-3.

So what are lessons that have been learned so far?

• Shaquille O'Neal's impact isn't in his stat line.

If you took one look at O'Neal's stats without having seen the Cavs play, it would seem like he's not having a good season. In 14 games -- he missed six games with a shoulder strain -- O'Neal is averaging a career-low 10.9 points on career-low 52 percent shooting, a career-low 6.6 rebounds in a career-low 23.4 minutes.

Several different publications have quoted scouts or executives saying that O'Neal clogs the lane and prevents penetrators like Mo Williams and James from getting to the basket and makes it impossible to space the floor properly. The other criticism is O'Neal is a defensive liability.

All of these statements, frankly, have proven not to be true so far.

O'Neal does help clog the lane, for the opposition. With O'Neal, the Cavs have three different center options with Anderson Varejao and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. This allows for a crisp rotation depending on the opponent and makes sure the Cavs have size in the game at all times.

The Cavs lead the NBA in keeping teams from scoring in the paint, giving up 33.5 points a game. The team in second place is the Orlando Magic, who are there mostly because of the impact Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard has in protecting the rim. The Cavs don't have Howard, but their three centers create a similar defensive situation.

O'Neal has struggled in pick-and-roll coverage at times, as he has throughout his career. But the Cavs' rotations have mostly been good and their defense as strong as last season. They are fourth in the NBA in fewest points allowed at 93.6. They are third in defensive field-goal percentage at .436.

On offense, the Cavs are averaging 3.6 more points in the paint this season than last, a direct impact of having O'Neal. In addition, their team field goal percentage is up to 48 percent. Assists are up as well, an impact O'Neal has from drawing double teams.

His impact has perhaps been greatest on J.J. Hickson, who moved into the starting lineup alongside O'Neal and has lived off the attention O'Neal and James draw. Finding soft spots near the rim, Hickson is shooting 61 percent since moving in the starting lineup. That is the best among all starting power forwards in the league over the same span.

Even if all of those stats seem numbing, here is the most salient number: With O'Neal in the lineup, the Cavs are 5-1 against teams with records over .500 so far.