The Cleveland Cavaliers will enter next season undermanned to open the 2025-26 season, but once healthy, they have the strongest roster in the Eastern Conference.
Last season, the Cavs managed injuries well throughout the regular season, but the playoffs led to untimely injuries to crucial players. Ultimately, the absence of Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and De'Andre Hunter in Game Two against the Indiana Pacers left Cleveland in a steep 0-2 hole ahead of a trip to Indianapolis. The painful loss was a major indictment on the Cavaliers' preparedness entering the postseason for the third year in a row.
Injuries have been a plague on the Cavaliers over the last three postseason. Every year, Cleveland has struggled to remain fully healthy. Against the Orlando Magic in 2024, Jarrett Allen suffered a serious rib injury that kept him from action in the following Boston Celtics series.
In a recent article for Bleacher Report, Zach Buckley assessed the biggest problem hovering over each of the 30 NBA franchises ahead of the 2025-26 regular season. Many of Cleveland's biggest conference threats face questions regarding roster composition, organizational fit, long-term injury or a lack of true star power.
For the Cavaliers, Buckley's analysis surrounds the same problem the Cavs have faced for three years. Garland and Max Strus will miss time when the year starts, but those temporary struggles may prove to be evidence that the Cavaliers are ready to win it all.
Temporary injuries is a good biggest problem to have for the Cavaliers
As Buckley notes, most of Cleveland's big-picture problems cannot be answered until they overcome them in the playoffs. The Cavaliers entered the 2025 playoffs with 64 wins in the regular season and to earn the best record in the Eastern Conference. The only team with a better record, the Oklahoma City Thunder, won the Finals with the league MVP at the helm. Cleveland, conversely, fell short in five games in the second round.
Healthy or injured, the Cavs have lacked postseason intensity. If, though, Buckley's regular-season assessment is correct, Cleveland is in a great position.
"While it's unclear how long Cleveland will be without Darius Garland (toe) and Max Strus (foot), it sounds like neither will be ready to go at the season's start. Covering either spot could be tricky. Garland's backup from this past season, Ty Jerome, moved on in free agency, and Cleveland sacrificed wing depth (Isaac Okoro) to cover for the loss of Jerome, by trading for the talented, but often injured, Lonzo Ball."Zach Buckley
Buckley addresses the Cavs' key offseason decision to move on from Isaac Okoro for a well-respected point guard in Lonzo Ball. The former Chicago Bulls guard will be Garland's go-to replacement off the bench, but he himself brings a long list of injury history.
While continuous untimely injuries are a rightful critique of Cleveland's big-picture potential, the front office and coaching staff seem to be adjusting their gameplan to fix this problem. Both Lonzo and Garland will be treated with careful attention to maintain health through the first 82 games, potentially missing back-to-back contests in the name of postseason durability.
Adding other depth pieces like Tyrese Proctor in the Draft and Larry Nance, Jr. and Thomas Bryant in free agency gives the Cavs enough depth to confidently rest players without risk of dropping too many games. It may cost the Cavaliers embarrassing losses to lesser opponents, but risk management must be the primary goal this year.
If temporary early injuries are the biggest problem the Cavaliers face this season, then they are in the best position in recent history to win a championship. As other franchises like the Pacers and Celtics sit in Limbo with star injuries that could sideline Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum, respectively, for the full season, the Cavaliers know they will have everybody together sooner rather than later.
This may be the Cavs' best chance to prove the core four's questionable construction with two small guards and two big men is capable of winning in the postseason. Garland and Strus are legitimate losses for the Cleveland Cavaliers, but that temporary pain can be mitigated through depth and smart decision making by the medical and coaching staffs.