Though the Cleveland Cavaliers had a fantastic regular season in 2022-23, their playoffs performance created a number of questions.
The offseason seemingly fulfilled their need for improved long range shooting with Max Strus and Georges Niang. Both players were in the highest percentiles of corner 3-point percentage, with Strus in the 80th and Niang in the 98th, via Cleaning the Glass (subscription required).
Cleveland also re-signed Caris LeVert for the next two seasons after both parties expressed interest in extending LeVert’s tenure with the Cavs. Over last season, LeVert embraced a myriad of roles on the team, which caused a level of inconsistency. He still managed to be one of Cleveland’s most consistent players, especially in the playoffs.
Additionally, the Cavs signed combo guard Ty Jerome on a two-year, $5 million deal and traded for Utah’s athletic center Damian Jones. Neither player seems likely to be locked into Cleveland’s rotation on opening night, but their presence and availability will offer the Cavs better depth than they experienced last season.
With such an active offseason, the Cavaliers should be even better than they were last season. At the start of the 2022-23 season, ESPN ranked the Cavs 17th in the NBA. In their most recent power ranking, Cleveland broke into the top 10 with the ninth spot.
After a 51-31 record last year with a developing young core, the Cavaliers are nearing true NBA Finals contention. Though everything suggests Cleveland will be an incredible roster to watch this year, they are far from a perfect roster.
Regardless of their improvements, they will have a number of questions to answer and things to prove for both their new additions and returning talent.
We’ll emphasize the Cavaliers’ three biggest question marks going into the 2023-24 season.
Without further ado, let’s begin.
Question 1 – Will Max Strus make enough impact on the wing?
In the Cavaliers’ sign-and-trade for Strus, they routed both Cedi Osman and Lamar Stevens to San Antonio, swapping two forwards for one in return.
Strus will undoubtedly be Cleveland’s best shooting wing, compared to Caris LeVert and Isaac Okoro. But, will he be enough?
While Strus’ offense both inside and outside of the 3-point line shows dynamic scoring ability, his defense and undersized build could leave the Cavaliers fighting uphill battles against some of the NBA’s elite.
Standing at 6-foot-5, Max Strus is a shorter option at the three spot. Against taller forward stars such as LeBron James, Jayson Tatum, and others, Strus’ mismatch could be easily exposed if the Cavs do not make the right adjustments.
Though Isaac Okoro at 6-foot-5 was Cleveland’s answer on defense for plenty of these players, his size still was a cause for concern in certain matchups. In those situations, Lamar Stevens was often deployed as the next man up. With Stevens gone, the Cavs could be at a serious disadvantage.
Regardless of Strus’ defense, he will have to carry the majority of the offensive load for the wing position. LeVert played most of his minutes as a guard by the end of the season, and Okoro’s offense still leaves a lot to be desired.
In reality, bringing Strus to Cleveland is only the start of building a solid wing/forward rotation. He will surely impact the Cavs positively, threatening lazy defenses on the perimeter both as as shooter and slasher. But, the minutes when Strus is not on the court, the Cavaliers will be right back where they were last year, hoping Okoro’s subpar offense will miraculously be decent enough.
Strus is not the only Cavalier whose role will need to be addressed. Another member of the Land might still be searching for his best fit.
Question 2 – How will the Cavs utilize Caris LeVert?
As aforementioned, Columbus native Caris LeVert was thrown into a few different roles with the Cavs last year. In the first handful of games, LeVert was Cleveland’s starting small forward until repeatedly bouncing between a bench role and a starting role.
The lack of consistency in minutes and assignments created a tumultuous situation for LeVert. In the playoffs, he was returned to the starting roster once again when Okoro could not handle the New York Knicks well enough.
In the midst of Darius Garland’s early eye injury to start the 2022-23 season, LeVert started alongside Donovan Mitchell in the backcourt, where he had an outstanding 41-point performance to overcome the Boston Celtics.
Eventually, LeVert embraced the sixth man role. Though he is a fine enough forward, he plays best when he can have a part in orchestrating the offense. He is more of an on-ball player than most wings and forwards tend to be.
This gave the Cavaliers a real scoring option off a shallow bench lineup, averaging 12.1 points on a 51.7 percent efficient field goal percentage, and he will probably continue to thrive in this position this year. But, in the face of injury, LeVert will likely be asked to fulfill other roles again.
If the Cavaliers cannot give LeVert a consistent identity, then it is hard to imagine they will ever be able to maximize his value and possible impact. This could end up in another bout of trade rumors surrounding the veteran wing.
A rough regular season for LeVert and the overall team will lead to a eternally growing rumor mill surrounding Cleveland’s core.
Question 3 – Can the Cavaliers convince Donovan Mitchell to commit long-term?
After just one season with the Cavaliers, the media has already exhausted every possible argument as to why Donovan Mitchell should his force way out of the best team he has ever had.
Recently, NBA Insider Tim Bontemps expressed how he believes there’s likely no way that Mitchell will ever sign an extension in Cleveland. While this comment alarmed plenty of the Cavaliers fanbase, it is no more than an overreaction to a poor playoff showing by the entire team, including Mitchell.
Bontemps has plenty of questions for the Cavs and is not expecting them to be the right fit for Mitchell’s prime years. Instead, he unsurprisingly thinks a team in the NBA’s biggest market should land the star they have coveted year after year.
Conversely, last season was a career year for Mitchell. He finished the year with 28.3 points (career-high) and 4.4 assists per game while knocking down 38.6 percent of his 9.3 3-point attempts per game. His efforts and leadership were not ignored by the league, either, being named to the All-NBA Second Team for the first time in his career.
Sometimes, a player’s greatness can go unnoticed in favor of a player on a more historic team such as the Lakers or Knicks. For Mitchell, though, his achievements are being met with accolades. Along with his All-NBA selection, Mitchell ranked sixth in MVP voting this past season.
Suggesting that Mitchell cannot thrive and succeed in Cleveland is ludicrous. The Cavaliers deserve criticism for their failure in the playoffs, but they should not panic and trade Mitchell after one year.
Every move this offseason showed a serious commitment to winning and building around their All-Star guard. Not only will the new additions help, but the ongoing development of their young stars in Evan Mobley and Darius Garland only make Cleveland a bigger threat in the East.
Thus far, the Cavs have shown Mitchell they can and will compete. Their front office has created an attractive environment for free agents, something New York has notoriously been unable to accomplish. It is important to remember that Mitchell had reportedly run around screaming for joy when he heard he was coming to Cleveland. He is not upset to be here.
If the team continues to fall below expectations, then Mitchell’s future should be in question. For now, however, the Cavs are only getting better, and Mitchell is sure to recognize this.