The Cleveland Cavaliers are among the most talented teams in the NBA and should be a top-three seed in the East. The crew has dynamic guard play, exceptional backline help, point-of-attack disruption, capable marksmen and quality coaching. It’s time for the Wine and Gold to eat from the fruits of its labor in year three of its build.
With multi-year commitments from Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley in place, the Cavaliers enter next season with confidence in the team's future core. While the roster is still imperfect, Cleveland has one of the league's premier cores and is poised to make a statement next season.
Here’s how the Cavaliers will surprise the public in 2024-25.
An Eastern Conference Finals Trip
It's a shame the group's health broke down at the end of last season because the Cavaliers had the horses to make it uglier against the Boston Celtics. Of course, that doesn't mean they would have won. But the team has an excellent foundation, starting with an MVP-caliber player in Donovan Mitchell, plus two game-changing defensive anchors in Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.
Former All-Star Darius Garland is on deck, too. Remember that DG on a down year (2023-24) made half his shots between 10-16 feet from the cup and connected on 37 percent of hoisted trays. The Cavs will be extra dangerous this year if the coaching staff rehabilitates Garland's efficiency in the paint non-restricted area. In 2023-24, he had his lowest statistical mark, logging 40.6 percent of shots attempted in that spot. In the two seasons prior, he registered a career-high of 45.1 percent accuracy.
Still, the core four are capable of much more and can’t be happy with second-round exits in the future after taking one piece of flesh from the Celtics while understaffed.
However, alterations to the attack will make things easier for the contributors so they aren’t burnt out at the end of the year. For example, raising DG and Mobley’s usage while having Mitchell come off the ball from the slot (wing) or corners and curl around flares takes most of the eyes off the best player. Taking into account how coach Atkinson comes from Steve Kerr’s Golden State staff, the Warriors are best when Stephen Curry is off-ball because it’s harder to trap him. It would make Mitchell even more laborious to defend if he can’t be schemed the same way.
And why can’t the Cavs get there? Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid’s health is a ticking stick of dynamite every year, sad to report. The Bucks are a potent team but will eventually be crippled by head coach Doc Rivers. The Miami Heat are running back a weaker group and likely won’t do anything serious unless Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra make a deal with Satan for the return of Playoff Jimmy Butler.