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3 dominant lineups the Cavs have to use next season

By Josh Cornelissen

Kevin Love (from left), Darius Garland, Ricky Rubio, Evan Mobley and Cedi Osman, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Kevin Love (from left), Darius Garland, Ricky Rubio, Evan Mobley and Cedi Osman, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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Caris LeVert, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images /

3 dominant lineups the Cavs have to use next season: New starting group

Lineups: Darius Garland, Caris LeVert, Lauri Markkanen, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

We finally come to a lineup we are all but guaranteed to see next season, as heading into training camp it looks like the early favorite to be the starting lineup to start the season. Caris LeVert joined the team at the NBA Trade Deadline last season but immediately got hurt, and by the time he came back Jarrett Allen was out with an injury of his own.

Therefore this group didn’t actually play together until the last game of the season, the Cavs’ second Play-In Game against the Atlanta Hawks. There Bickerstaff not only tried it out but leaned on it, and it very nearly worked. For 24 of the game’s 48 minutes, the Cavs played this five, and it roasted the Hawks’ defense to the tune of a 119.6 offensive rating, and overall outscored the Hawks by 17.4 points per 100 possessions.

Unfortunately for the Cavs, the other half of the game did not go their way, and they lost to the Hawks and dropped out of the playoffs. Still, the performance of this group had to be encouraging for the Cavs as they look towards next year. It’s unlikely it will have such a strong net rating when played heavy minutes every game, but if it can be clearly positive that will be a big win.

If that success in just 24 minutes against one opponent leads the Cavs to hand LeVert a lucrative contract extension, perhaps it becomes a huge loss, but for now it is a point of optimism in the midst of LeVert’s struggles in a Cavaliers jersey last season.

Next. Do the Cavs have the best center rotation in the NBA?. dark

The Cavs have plenty of options for next season, and they should absolutely involve Dean Wade more and work in their newcomers. Ochai Agbaji could be a mainstay for this article next season if he has the kind of rookie season that the Cavs think he can. These groups, however, were so successful last year they absolutely need to be tried out next year.