INDEPENDENCE, Ohio--Sam Dekker was born to run.

Well, at least born to run on the hardwood.

"That's really been me my whole life," Dekker said. "I've loved getting up and down the court."

Fortunately, the former Wisconsin Badgers standout is in the perfect place to do just what he loves.

Since his first day on the job in 2016, head coach Tyronn Lue has been very open about his desire for the Cavaliers to be a fast-paced, high-tempo basketball team.

At times that speed showed, but most of the time, the team's offensive tempo was dictated by LeBron James-- which was far more of a plus than a minus.

Without LeBron, however, Lue is really looking to push the pace, which the athletic forward can certainly help him to do.

"He's been really good," Lue said. "Runs the floor, is an excellent cutter... He's surprised me."

Though Dekker has officially practiced with the Cavaliers only a handful of times, he's already feeling the benefits of being in Cleveland.

First of all, a Sheboygan, WI native who maintains his home there in the offseason, the "Midwest guy" is happy to be back in the heartland.

Then, of course, he's thrilled with the freedom that the team has given him to get out, run the floor and make plays.

"When they brought me in, they said, 'We just want to let you loose,' and that's been so awesome," Dekker said. "I'm really playing at a high level, playing like me, which has been good. I got away from that a little bit last year, so to just have the floor open for me, let me use my dribbling ability and outside shot, and just opening the game up for myself to create for others has been fun."

After a somewhat successful sophomore season with the Rockets, Dekker was dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of the trade that sent Chris Paul to Houston.

As he mentioned, the Clippers didn't get the Sam Dekker that they expected.

In Houston, Dekker averaged 6.4 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, shooting 32% from beyond the three-point line in over 18 minutes per game.

When he arrived in Los Angeles, Dekker scored just 4.2 points and grabbed 2.4 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game.

He also shot an abysmal 16.7% from beyond the three-point line.

When they acquired Dekker in an August trade, the Cavaliers were banking on finding the athletic, savvy playmaker they saw in Houston as opposed to the guy who struggled in LA.

Thus far in Cleveland, at least to Lue, Dekker has been that and more.

"He's shooting the ball better than I thought he could; I didn't know he could shoot the ball as well as he has," Lue said. "He can pass the basketball. His play-making ability being able to pass the ball and see different plays and situations... It's good having him here."

Perhaps part of the reason that Dekker has been more himself is the confidence the coaching staff has provided him.

Not only are they allowing him to be free on the court, running and cutting to his delight, but they too have been telling him just how happy they've been with his play thus far.

"The coaching staff has been so good about opening up to me," Dekker said. "That's given me a lot of confidence here... When I have that confidence level up, I can do a lot of good things. I'm just excited to keep doing that."

Now that the coaches have handed Dekker the keys to the car, he's ready to put the petal to the medal.

He played in a similar system with the Rockets, where he had some success, but Dekker hopes to take it to the next level with the Cavaliers.

He's been given that opportunity and, as he always has, he wants to run with it.

"It's just time for me to take that next step," Dekker said. "I think that's the big thing I'm going for: not really to break out, but just take that next step and show, 'Oh, this is a guy who can be here for a long time, a guy that can last in this league.'"