Crafting the perfect offseason moves for Cleveland Cavaliers this summer

The Cleveland Cavaliers are approaching the NBA playoffs as one of the Eastern Conference's premier squads.

With the fourth-best net rating in the Association, the Cavaliers are set up for a much-improved playoff berth than last year. Behind Donovan Mitchell's best season of his career, Jarrett Allen's emergence and Evan Mobley's dominant return from injury, Cleveland is a team that could spoil any other contender's hopes. Throughout the extended period without Darius Garland or Evan Mobley, the Cavs discovered a new confidence and depth that has established them atop the conference.

At this season's trade deadline, the Cavs stayed silent and opted to buy into their well-rounded talent and in-season growth after a busy offseason last summer. With a group of contract extensions and roster decisions ahead of Cleveland, this coming offseason will hold significant impact on the future of the franchise. With the NBA Finals in their sight, the Cavs should build upon what has worked thus far and buy into their existing strengths. This is how Cleveland can evolve once again and have the ideal offseason, starting with their existing talent.

Keep Donovan Mitchell for the long-term

Getting the obvious out of the way, agreeing to a contract extension with Donovan Mitchell to keep him in Cleveland for the foreseeable future should top the Cavs' priority list. Mitchell has been the best player to take court for the Cavaliers since LeBron James joined the squad in 2003. Regardless of the baseless rumors around Mitchell's intentions to escape Cleveland as soon as possible, the Cavaliers cannot voluntarily give up on their leading superstar after two seasons unless he demands a trade.

Thus far, Mitchell has always expressed joy to be in Cleveland. Most recently, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com reported that Spida is perfectly happy exactly where he's at already. To start their offseason on the right note, the Cavaliers must show Mitchell long-term commitment in order to take the next step toward the Finals.