The Cleveland Cavaliers reportedly are likely to keep the core of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley intact this coming offseason.
Cleveland won 51 games during the regular season, earning the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference, but it was promptly bounced out of the playoffs by the New York Knicks in five games.
“In other words, the Cavs aren’t like to make any major splashes this offseason, instead looking to add reserve help to the likes of the core of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen,” Hoops Wire’s Sam Amico wrote.
Cleveland needs more help on the wing, as the team benched youngster Isaac Okoro for Caris LeVert during its playoff series with the Knicks. Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff struggled to find the right rotation that worked, using LeVert, Okoro, Cedi Osman and Danny Green in different lineups.
It makes sense that the Cavs apparently don’t want to move on from any of their top players, but it was clear during the first round that the team lacked the depth the Knicks had.
After trading for Mitchell last offseason, Cleveland took the leap that it wanted in the regular season to finally make the playoffs.
He and Garland are both All-Star caliber guards, but the team needs to complement them better by adding more shooting. Okoro (30.8 percent from deep in the playoffs) and Osman (30.0 percent) struggled to make the Knicks pay from beyond the arc, allowing them to focus on slowing down Garland and Mitchell.
As for Mobley and Allen, both bigs were a key reason why Cleveland finished the regular season with the No. 1 defensive rating in the NBA. The potential for Mobley, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, is through the roof, so Cleveland should be looking to keep him for as long as possible.
While Cleveland’s 2022-23 season didn’t end the way it wanted, it was a positive step forward for a franchise that has struggled to find its footing without LeBron James.
For now, it seems like the Cavs believe in the core that they have built.
It’s possible the team could look to make a trade to improve on the wing. There’s also apparently mutual interest in bringing back LeVert.
