Ranking the Cavaliers most likely to make an All-Star team in 2023-24

In 2022, the Cavaliers had their first All-Star selection since LeBron James left for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018. Both Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen were named All-Star reserves for the NBA’s 75th All-Star Game, which so happened to be hosted in Cleveland, Ohio.

A year prior, neither player was viewed as a definite All-Star. In fact, Darius Garland’s perception across the league was that he was one of the Association’s worst and least efficient players, often criticized by many reporters and analysts. When Garland broke out into stardom in the 2021-22 season, his All-Star appearance was a tremendous victory in his redemption campaign.

For Jarrett Allen, his All-Star selection proved that the former Brooklyn Nets big man was more than a solid defender with a memorable hairstyle. He began receiving more recognition for his staggering defense and scoring ability inside. While neither Garland nor Allen were selected to the All-Star Game in 2023, the Cavaliers still had newly acquired Donovan Mitchell named to the All-Star starters list.

With the 2023-24 season on its way and many major shifts around the league with the Damian Lillard trade finally settled, the Cleveland Cavaliers will excitedly hope to see their organization being able to announce All-Star selections for members of the Cavs once again.

In the offseason, the Cavs added much-needed depth to the roster, another element that could serve to elevate the greatness of their current stars and earn them another All-Star selection. Additionally, with Evan Mobley gaining another year of experience and already collecting accolades for his defense, Cleveland will hopefully witness Mobley’s name on the All-Star list for the first time.

With four players with the pedigree worthy of selection, how does Cleveland’s core four rank in terms of the likelihood of their selection as All-Stars in the 2023-24 season?

To get the obvious out of the way first, Donovan Mitchell will definitely be an All-Star, considering his long track record of four consecutive All-Star appearances since his third season in the NBA. Last season, Mitchell averaged a career-high 28.3 points with a strong 4.4 assists and 38.6 percent 3-point shot alongside. He was also named to his first All-NBA Second Team, making his inaugural Cavaliers season a career highlight for the veteran guard.

Not only did Mitchell have career averages, he set two franchise records with 71 points in a single game and 245 3-pointers made in a single season. Clearly, Mitchell has thrived thus far in Cleveland, and there is no reason to expect he will stop doing so next year.

Barring any unpredictable injuries or lapses, Spida Mitchell will see himself in the top of the Eastern Conference’s backcourt once again. Although Damian Lillard is now in the same conference, Mitchell still found himself in All-Star games in the Western Conference with Lillard back in his Jazz days. With Mitchell still improving every year, he is practically guaranteed a spot on the All-Star roster.

Next up is a player with a lot to prove and learn, who could soon be Cleveland’s best franchise player since LeBron.

Evan Mobley is far from underrated right now in the NBA, and it is for his benefit. At the age of 21, Mobley was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team and came third in Defensive Player of the Year voting. It has already become undeniable that Mobley is set for a long, dominant career. For the Cavaliers, having Mobley in their ranks is a miraculous feat.

Entering his third year, Mobley could be primed to join the main event during All-Star Weekend. Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com noted that both Mobley’s teammate in Garland and Hall of Fame big man Chris Bosh earned their first All-Star appearance in their third season. Donovan Mitchell did, too.

Fedor also mentioned that the All-Star leap for Mobley is a steep one, something that he may miss out on with the dominant backcourt in Cleveland and the great forwards in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum that reside in the East, as well. Mobley is showing real strides in his growth, however. During Media Day, Mobley said he will be a less “picky eater” offensively, looking to hone his offensive game and aggression. Right now, that has been the part of the game that has held Mobley back from the All-Star roster.

Additionally, Mobley has begun watching film of Miami Heat star big man Bam Adebayo as the next step in his offensive development as a scorer and playmaker. With a heavy focus on personal development, Mobley may learn a healthy level of selfishness on the court, helping the Cavaliers gain another offensive threat and earn an All-Star selection for himself.

Mobley takes a slight edge in his chances over the next Cavalier due to the stacked backcourt options in the Eastern Conference.

As mentioned, Garland has been an All-Star once before in 2022. While Garland’s averages dropped ever so slightly this last season, it also came with Donovan Mitchell at his side and an uptick in efficiency, especially on the perimeter.

With Garland having a prior All-Star appearance, he would usually be ahead of Mobley in likelihood for a second; however, the rising level of star guards in the East and his exclusion last season could make it difficult for Garland to earn the respect he deserves. Garland is undoubtedly an All-Star-level point guard, but there are only so many spots available. With the star power and attention that Donovan Mitchell demands naturally, Garland could be seen as the secondary backcourt player and have a hard time making the team.

It is not impossible for Garland to make it. He missed the first two weeks of the regular season last year due to an eye injury, and he still took time to return to form once he came back due to the blurred vision. With a shaky start to the season and Mitchell’s historic moments, Garland’s accolades were overshadowed at times. If Garland can enter this season on fire and build up his reputation again, then he will be in a position to remind the NBA why he is compared to legendary NBA point guards so often.

Finally, this Cavalier is looking to remind the NBA after some brutal criticisms following the playoffs.

Similar to Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen may miss his opportunity for the All-Star Game if his frontcourt partner Evan Mobley is named ahead of him.

Unfortunately for Allen, though, he enters this season with a harmed reputation after his honesty following the five-game series loss against the Knicks. Allen’s infamous comment that the lights were “too bright” has severely hurt the big man’s perception across the NBA. Although Allen’s own performance in the playoffs was lukewarm, he has yet to be a negative asset for Cleveland. His rebounding errs were not simply due to poor effort, but they were often caused by the nearly nonexistent floor spacing by Cleveland that forced him away from the basket.

With improved depth on the Cavs, Allen can play to his strengths as an unstoppable interior threat on both ends of the court. Whether he is catching a lob or blocking one, Jarrett Allen is nothing less than a fantastic center in the modern NBA. Even in the midst of his public scrutiny, Allen was attracting plenty of interest from teams looking to trade for a player of his skillset. His value is clearly still high, and he has all the abilities to prove that this season.

Hopefully, Jarrett Allen can enter this season with a chip on his shoulder and a stronger mental fortitude in physical matchups. Any of these four (maybe all? Wishful thinking, but…) could be named to the 2024 All-Star roster as the Cavaliers continue to enter into contention among the best of the Eastern Conference.