Cavs: How the experts graded their moves this offseason

The Cleveland Cavaliers have had a quiet offseason thus far, making just a single draft pick and re-signing just one player in free agency. Both of those players are expected starters, so the quality of their moves is high, but the volume is certainly low.

Activity does not mean progress, and many teams in recent seasons have dominated the transaction tracker but failed to deliver results. With the Cavs on a long-term rebuild, an extreme makeover was not necessary. This was not the Atlanta Hawks of last season, ready to use up cap space and make a leap.

The Cavs made minimal moves in the draft and free agency, but they were high impact

There may be more moves on the margins coming, and potentially even a major trade involving a key rotation player, but for now the Cavs seem set heading out of Summer League. They drafted big man Evan Mobley with the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, and re-signed center Jarrett Allen to a five-year, $100 million contract.

The true value and impact of those moves won’t be seen for some time, but it’s important even now to evaluate what the Cavs have done based on our current knowledge of player values and the market.

To that end, we’ve rounded up what some of the “experts” covering the NBA have said in grading the Cavaliers’ offseason moves. Are the Cavs’ moves being reviewed in a favorable light, or are there issues with the process or results that are raising red flags? Let’s start with the draft and their selection from the third slot.