Regrading the Cavaliers trade for Caris LeVert last season

As the Cleveland Cavaliers take a week off for the All-Star Break, we have time to look back at this point last season. The Cavs spent the 2022 All-Star Break celebrating their two young All-Stars and all of the pomp of hosting the event in Cleveland, with a team well ahead of expectations and on track to make the playoffs.

To help with that final push the Cavs added Indiana Pacers swingman Caris LeVert at the NBA Trade Deadline a year ago. He was supposed to step in as the replacement for the injured Collin Sexton and be the secondary creator beside Darius Garland. That didn’t quite happen, as an injury to Jarrett Allen tore a hole in their defense and LeVert struggled with injuries himself.

The Cavaliers lost just enough games down the stretch to land in the Play-In Tournament and lose without making the eight-team playoff field. LeVert is now just a few months away from hitting free agency and is coming off the bench for one of the best teams in the East.

How does the Caris LeVert trade look one year later?

With the benefit of hindsight, let’s look back at that deal a year later. What has worked with the LeVert – Cleveland pairing, and what has not? Finally, we’ll give a final verdict on the trade that we initially graded a “B-” when it first happened. How will it come out today?