The rebuild is over! But these Cavaliers are not done yet

1998.

That is the last time the Cleveland Cavaliers made the playoffs without LeBron James. He was 13 years old at the time. Meanwhile, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley were not even born yet. Donovan Mitchell was an infant and Jarrett Allen had not yet grown his afro. 25 years later, these four are part of one of the more remarkable turnarounds in recent NBA memory.

The Cavaliers are headed back to the postseason and are looking to make some noise. The junkyard dogs have fought and clawed their way back to NBA relevance for the past five years. Playoff basketball is finally back in the Land, but it was not an easy road to get back to this point.

The Cleveland Cavaliers made a major turnaround to clinch a playoff berth.

When LeBron James spurned Cleveland for the second time in 2018, leaving to join the Los Angeles Lakers, the cloud of darkness that presided over the franchise after his first exit in 2011 returned. The Cavaliers went back to their losing ways, as they won a combined 60 games from 2019 to 2021. The Cavs became arguably the laughingstock of the league.

Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse didn’t seem nearly as rowdy. The Cavs had no bark or bite. There was no junkyard dog mentality, just lifeless basketball. After John Beilein’s disastrous 54-game tenure as head coach, the Cavs decided enough was enough.

Beilein’s resignation opened the door for J.B. Bickerstaff to become the head coach of the Cavs. Bickerstaff, who is the son of former NBA coach Bernie Bickerstaff, brought a no-nonsense mentality to a franchise that sorely needed it. In addition to that, the Cavaliers and their consistent losing ways allowed them to pick high in the draft, which led to acquiring Darius Garland, Isaac Okoro and Evan Mobley, who are all key parts of the team now.

The acquisition of Jarrett Allen at the 2021 trade deadline gave the Cavs another young piece for the future and he was a huge part of their surprise season last year. After falling short in the Play-In Tournament to the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks, the Cavs pivoted quickly and acquired superstar Donovan Mitchell, to jumpstart their rise to contention.

Now, for the first time in five years, the Cavs are back in the postseason. They didn’t need The Chosen One to do it. They didn’t need a star-studded free agent class to jumpstart them. They rebuilt the hard way. However, they are not done yet.

This year’s Cavs team has the makings of a championship contender. They have the core four: Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. They have the head coach in Bickerstaff. They have the most double-digit wins in the league. They have held 22 opponents to 100 points or less, and they are top five in both offensive and defensive efficiency. They lead the NBA in net rating. I could go on and on and on.

While it is great to see the Cavaliers’ rebuilding journey finally come to an end, there is more work to be done. They are within sight of the No. 3 seed. The fourth seed and homecourt advantage in the first round is almost secured. A championship is in sight.

Last year, this team would have been happy to be in the playoffs. This year, and going forward they have loftier goals. Donovan Mitchell said it best: “We should come to a point now where that’s what is expected of us — making the playoffs and continuously pushing forward.”