Kyrie Irving

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving put in some extra work on Wednesday following another rough shooting night.

(Jonathan Bachman, Associated Press)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It was about an hour after the game ended. The Cleveland Cavaliers had just suffered a loss that head coach David Blatt referred to as "embarrassing." Many of Kyrie Irving's teammates had showered, talked to the media, iced their feet and left.

Not Irving. He was just leaving the Quicken Loans Arena court with sweat dripping down his forehead following a 45-minute shooting session with Phil Handy, the Cavs' Director of Player Development.

"Just getting extra shots up," Irving said after the session.

It's not the first time Irving has had an extended on-court practice session following a game, and it likely won't be the last.

"I'm very meticulous when it comes to jump shooting," Irving said. "The coaches can't do anything, it has to come from me. My teammates have to trust in me and still give me the ball. In order for us to be successful and part of our process of growing I have to knock down the open looks I'm getting off the ball."

Irving finished Wednesday's game with nine points, his second-lowest total of the season. He made 4-of-9 from the field, but missed some shots he normally makes, including all three three-point attempts.

During a second-half blitz by the Atlanta Hawks, Irving and many of his teammates couldn't respond, leading to a 29-point loss, the most lopsided of the season. Irving played 12 second-half minutes. He didn't score a basket. He didn't grab a rebound.

Marred in a shooting slump that has lasted nearly two weeks, Irving has failed to reach his season average of 20 points in six of the last seven games, a brutal stretch after getting off to a great start this season.

Irving has said the right things after games. He has talked about not worrying about individual stats, only focused on wins, but as the ball continues to clank of the rim, the frustration builds.

He has made less than 50 percent of his shot attempts in each of the last seven games, and is averaging 13.8 points on 37 percent from the field (38-of-101), including 14 percent from three-point range (5-of-34) since exploding for a season-high 37 points on Dec. 4 against the New York Knicks.

"Getting good looks, just have to knock them down for our team," he said. "It's frustrating for myself. When I'm getting the looks I want to get and they're in and out or I'm just being lazy with my jump shot. Just have to figure it out. I felt like it's what I needed to do and a couple of my teammates came out there."

LeBron James was one of the spectators.

"He's a gym rat," James said of Irving. "Anytime I went back on the court to shoot I feel like I was either out of rhythm or struggling and I just wanted to see the ball go in. Do I know what his mindset is? I'm not sure, but that's how I would feel."

Irving and the Cavs will return to the practice floor on Thursday, trying to get ready for the third game of the homestand on Friday night against Brooklyn.

That's hardly the team Irving wants to see after a rough outing against the Hawks. In the first meeting between the Cavs and Nets, he scored a season-low seven points on 2-of-10 shooting.

Despite his recent shooting trouble and going through an extra practice session, Irving doesn't feel like he's that far off from once again regaining his early-season form.

"It's just a few inches to the left, a few inches to the right. A little extra work never hurts."

Kyrie is back on the court long after the game has ended getting up shots pic.twitter.com/XwPflJhn1l — Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 18, 2014