Things are heating up in Cleveland.
Success breeds expectations, and the expectations for the Cavaliers have risen to a great height. Fans may not be expecting a championship each season like they did during the second LeBron James administration, but this is a team that has been really good for a half-decade and are expected to truly contend for a trip to the NBA Finals.
Those expectations are resting on the entire team, but they weigh most heavily on a few shoulders. Donovan Mitchell certainly has a lot of expectations lain on him as the franchise star, but he just signed a new long-term contract; he isn't going anywhere. Similarly, James Harden could disappoint and is stuck on the team with his new contract.
Three individuals in particular have a high level of expectation and could find themselves in a new place if this season doesn't go well.
No. 1: Kenny Atkinson
There is a curse associated with winning Coach of the Year, and it has not passed Kenny Atkinson by. The 2025 winner of the award came in and revolutionized the offense, overseeing a 64-win season and a No. 1 seed from the Cavaliers.
Then came an absolute punking in the playoffs by the Indiana Pacers, and last year the Cavs floundered through a mediocre season before clawing their way to the Eastern Conference Finals. Perhaps it would have been better to lose in the second round again, however, as a four-game sweep to the New York Knicks only made the end of last season feel worse.
Now Atkinson has to manage an improved Eastern Conference with an arguably worse roster. The starting 5 may be better than lat year but will need time to gel, and the bench is objectively worse. Are young players like Jaylon Tyson and Meleek Thomas ready to step up? Can Atkinson help Mario Hezonja transition back to the NBA and be an impact player? Is there another leap in Evan Mobley?
If the Cavaliers are merely fine once more and lose in the second round, Atkinson may be gone. For him to turn down the temperature he needs to advance further than last season -- certainly not an easy task.
No. 2: Craig Porter Jr.
Craig Porter Jr. has gone from not having a seat at all to being on a toasty warm one. Dennis Scroder was traded to the Charlotte Hornets, vacating the spot of backup point guard. While Donovan Mitchell will spend some amount of time as the lone ball-handling guard, the reality is that Porter Jr. will be a rotation mainstay to start the season.
Is the former undrafted player ready for the spotlight? He has been solid in spot duty in the past, but there has always been another option. Now things will rest on his shoulders, and he will be asked to elevate bench lineup that are unproven and newly-formed. If he is up to the challenge, he could secure a new long-term contract. If he is not, he could be ending his own NBA career.
No. 3: Jarrett Allen
With Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley not going anywhere, and Harden's new contract likely an obstacle to trading him anytime soon, the only member of the core players who could be traded at the deadline or next summer is Jarrett Allen.
Such a move has certainly been rumored before -- like clockwork every few month for years, in fact. Allen is a solid center -- somewhere between the 10th and 15th best center in the NBA, an underrated defender, a solid finisher on offense. He is properly paid and relatively unremarkable.
If the Cavaliers struggle, the primary roster change they can make is trading Allen for a wing or forward. Mobley would shift to the full-time center, and Allen would be playing somewhere else and watching the Cavs rise or fall without him. That may happen whether or not Allen plays well this year. If he and Mobley can truly thrive together, however, he can stave off that breakup.
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