The Cleveland Cavaliers had a disappointing end to their season, with a number of players they were counting on putting up poor performances in the playoffs. Despite their regular season success, the Cavs were clearly not ready to be a force in the postseason and lost in five games to the New York Knicks.
That’s fine – teams with little or no playoff experience almost always struggle that first time. Now the focus is on next year, and how to be more successful when the playoffs roll around. Some of the improvement they seek will come from upgrading the roster, but some will come simply from the players already wearing the wine and gold.
These five players will be better next season than they were this time around.
Danny Green will be much better next season
The Cavaliers took a chance on Danny Green on the buyout market, and while circumstances and illness limited his time with the team prior to the playoffs, he was one of the players head coach J.B. Bickerstaff tried out, and Green certainly had some good moments.
What’s mentioned but often not properly weighed is the fact that Green was playing prior to the one-year anniversary of his ACL tear. For any player, but especially one at his age, the road back from a major knee injury is a long one. It’s impressive that Green was able to play, but he should be even better with another 6 months off to heal.
Green is a free agent, so he may not be back with the Cavs next season. If he does return, however, his 3-point shot and defensive savvy will be much appreciated, and his championship experience will be welcomed in the locker room. A fully healthy Danny Green could be a dangerous weapon for the Cavs.
Dean Wade will be much better next season
Dean Wade has, sneakily or not, been one of the best reserves on the Cleveland Cavaliers over the last couple of seasons. Two seasons ago he was a part of the best lineups on the Cavs, backing up Lauri Markkanen and Evan Mobley at the forward positions. This past year, despite the struggles we will discuss, the Cavs were +2.4 points per 100 possessions better than their opponent when Wade was on the court.
In fact, the starting lineup with Wade at the 3 was a whopping +20.7 in 82 possessions, per Cleaning the Glass. That it only saw 82 possessions all season was a failure of coaching; that lineup made sense, it had worked in the past, and Bickerstaff avoided it like the plague.
So Wade’s season wasn’t as disappointing in reality as it appeared on the surface. Even so, he did struggle with his shooting upon returning from a long injury absence due to a sprained shoulder joint. He hit just 31 percent over those 22 games and then went 0-for-1 in the 11 minutes he received in the playoffs.
Wade is a much better shooter and much bolder shot-taker than he showed down the stretch, something that seems to be related to his injury. An offseason of rest and rebuilding his jumper should reasonably have him settle in at his career mark from outside. If his shot is falling at a league-average rate, his defense is exactly what the Cavs need and he should get another shot not just at the rotation but as the fifth starter as well.
Ricky Rubio will be much better next season
We come to the third of our injured veterans, and the one with the greatest gulf between how he was expected to play and how he actually performed. Two seasons ago, Ricky Rubio was a revelation for Cleveland. He averaged a career-best 13.1 points per game as Darius Garland’s backup, often playing alongside him in two-guard lineups that absolutely roasted teams.
Then Rubio tore his ACL, and he was traded only to come back in free agency. It was expected coming in that Rubio’s return would not come until well into the season, and indeed he sat out recovering until January and played in just 33 games down the stretch of the regular season.
Rubio was bad in those 33 games. His shot never came around, with Rubio’s lack of burst gaining separation and lift shooting jumpers contributed to an anemic 34.3 percent from the field and 25.6 percent from deep. In his 17 playoff minutes he shot just one time. Rubio was barely playable as a backup point guard this season, let alone a Sixth Man of the Year candidate as he was in 2021-22.
It may take players around a year to come back from an ACL tear, but it’s longer than that until they are back to normal. With an offseason to more fully recover and train he should be a much better player next season,, a more worthy backup to Garland and Donovan Mitchell in the backcourt.
Darius Garland will be much better next season
Technically, Darius Garland averaged more points per game in his third season, making the All-Star Game; this past year, his fourth, he averaged fewer points, fewer assists and did not receive any awards. Yet there is no question that Garland grew as a player last year, and he is young enough and has a track record of growth that suggests he will be even better next season.
Garland went from running the show two years ago to being the co-star last season alongside Donovan Mitchell. Garland increased his 3-point shooting, decreased his turnovers and otherwise thrived in that No. 2 role. He became better at manipulating defense, his chemistry in the pick-and-roll with both Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley only increased, and his ability to make an impact both on-ball and off-ball showed why he is one of the best guards in the NBA.
Now Garland has an entire offseason to train knowing what it takes to play beside Mitchell. He also has playoff experience under his belt, and he showed in the first round against the New York Knicks that his brand of basketball works on the biggest stage. Now he just needs to carry that forward.
Mitchell was certainly the better player this season, and he will likely average more points than Garland next season. Don’t be surprised when Garland proves to the league that they are true co-stars and earns another All-Star berth next season; his star continues to be on the rise.
Evan Mobley will be much better next season
Somehow, the narrative was created this past season that Evan Mobley was a disappointment. Sure he’s good on defense, but he was supposed to be an offensive phenom who combined Kevin Garnet with Chris Bosh with Michael Jordan with Blanko the Monstar. That Mobley didn’t take off and score 25 a game was a failing that proved he was overhyped.
Perhaps Mobley was overhyped by some, and comparing him to all-time legends is a tough legacy to live up to. Yet the reality is that the Cavaliers added an on-ball superstar in Donovan Mitchell and Mobley, as the third option, still increased his scoring, his rebounding and his assists while decreasing his turnovers. That also ignores the fact that Mobley was the best defender on the league’s best defense, finishing as a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year.
The last time a player 21 years old or younger finished in the Top 3 of that award? It’s never happened, going all the way back to the first year the award was handed out in 1982-83. Anthony Davis came close, finishing fourth in his age-21 season, and Tim Duncan was fifth as a rookie. Those are phenomenal names for Mobley to be matching up with.
The one area that hasn’t developed yet for Mobley is his outside shooting, and that will obviously be a point of emphasis this offseason. If he can’t improve as a shooter over the next few seasons the pairing with Jarrett Allen won’t work, but the strides he made this past season bode well for him to continue taking steps forward. He will only grow in his offensive role and impact, and he should be even better next season.
Donovan Mitchell and Jarrett Allen are both young and could be even better next season; from veterans getting healthy to young stars taking another step, this roster is full of players who should be even better next year. That bodes extremely well for a team that will look to take the next step and advance in the playoffs a year from now.