Koby Altman and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ front office were hard at work during the initial days of free agency. When the gates opened on Friday evening, the Cavs got to work – bringing back a familiar face, as well as adding some new pieces to the team.
For their first move in free agency, Cleveland wasted no time at all, re-signing Caris LeVert on a two-year, $32 million deal. Shortly after, the Cavs brought in sharpshooting forward Georges Niang on a three-year, $26 million deal. Cleveland saw two other additions to the team in the form of backup guard Ty Jerome and backup center Damian Jones, the latter of whom was acquired by way of trade from the Utah Jazz.
Perhaps the Cavs’ biggest move of free agency, however, came via a three-team sign-and-trade deal between Cleveland, the Miami Heat, and the San Antonio Spurs. This deal brought Cedi Osman, Lamar Stevens, and a second-round pick to the Spurs, while the Heat got a second-round pick as well, and the Cavs walked away with Max Strus on a four-year, $63 million contract.
With all of these moves, the Cavs have shown they are prioritizing their key needs – wing shooting and depth. Strus will more than likely be taking the role of the starting small forward for Cleveland this upcoming season. That leaves the new additions to the team as well as some other second unit players to make up the bench.
Let’s take a look at what the bench for the Cavaliers might look like in the upcoming 2023-24 season.
To start, let’s discuss the potential rotation for the bench.