2022 Off-season Thread - The Future is Bright

[Randolphkeys]

I have Boston, Milwaukee, and Philly as the top three in the East barring major injury.

Who cares about the rest of it. It's just a block of "wait and see". A two week stretch can bend the Cavs into or out of the play-in.

 

[adam81king]

(I'm the guy whipping that traitor @Man Called X in the honey pit)

Strategic ambiguity.

I hope its consensual...

 

[Benway]

Calling it now: Bronny to Utah.

 

[Peacedog]

This is honestly exactly where I have them. Knicks right behind them too (assuming they get Mitchell)

Need to pin this. The WORST I see is 5th in the East. A team full of improving young players finishes 8th despite a TON of injuries, and you have them taking a step back? Brilliant stuff there.

 

[gambler]

Need to pin this. The WORST I see is 5th in the East. A team full of improving young players finishes 8th despite a TON of injuries, and you have them taking a step back? Brilliant stuff there.

and finished with the 5th rated defense with the number 2 rim protector missing 26 games.....they need four....maybe five more points a game....then .they are the 7/8th rated offense.....7 offense and 4 defense....76ers were 18 and 8 last year.....heat 17 and 4

i really dont see how people cant put this together when by most accounts mobely is going to improve ....the probable addition of sexton...they are a high percentage three point 30min/game SF away from being top 4....

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

The Athletic also has the Cavs 9th in the East and 17th overall.

17. Cleveland Cavaliers

Major additions: Ricky Rubio (free agent), Robin Lopez (free agent), Ochai Agbaji (draft), Raul Neto (free agent)

Major subtractions: Rajon Rondo (free agent), Ed Davis (free agent)

Did this team get better? They did, and we should probably expect Collin Sexton’s deal to get done sooner rather than later. Hopefully he can give a healthy campaign to this Cleveland Cavaliers team that took a big step forward last season. The Cavs fizzled out with the injuries, but they zigged when others zagged by competing with huge lineups in the modern NBA. Bringing Rubio back (assuming he’s healthy from the ACL) is an upgrade. Lopez is good depth for a loaded frontcourt. This team didn’t lose much, and they bring back experience that matters. The improvement of newly wealthy man Darius Garland and star sophomore Evan Mobley probably dictates the most for next season. Can they avoid the Play-In and make the top six?

I would have added Sexton to the "major additions" list since he only played 11 games last year. And I certainly would not classify either Rondo or Davis as "major" subtractions. No subtraction is how I would categorize it.

Also, they only had LeVert for less than half the season, so he is a partial addition.

Start with the team that was kicking butt in December before the Rubio injury. Add Sexton, LeVert, Agbagi, Lopez and factor in an improved Mobley and you get the team the Cavs will have in the second half when Rubio returns. But, yeah, they won't have Rondo, Ed Davis, Pangos, and Moses Brown. Gotta factor in those major subtractions.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

According to The Athletic, these teams ranked above the Cavs got better in the off-season.

Boston (ranked 2nd behind Golden State)
Milwaukee (due to better health)
76ers
Bulls
Hawks (a lot)
Raptors (marginally)

Teams that did not get better:

Nets
Heat

 

[guitarguy]

I feel like 4 through 9 in the east is a coinflip.

 

[Peacedog]

According to The Athletic, these teams ranked above the Cavs got better in the off-season.

Boston (ranked 2nd behind Golden State)
Milwaukee (due to better health)
76ers
Bulls
Hawks (a lot)
Raptors (marginally)

Teams that did not get better:

Nets
Heat

The Sixers and Bulls have very key players on the downside of their careers. No way they'll be better. The Raptors should be a bit better, but not by enough to offset the Cavs greater improvement (and health). The Hawks will not improve more than Cleveland and we were better last year. I see Milwaukee and Boston as the only two teams with a strong likelihood of being better than Cleveland this year. And if Durant and Irving stay put, probably Brooklyn. Miami will be worse, but not sure we pass them. So, somewhere between the 3 and 5 seed is where I see the Cavs. 52-55 wins.

 

[CavsFaninNJ]

Just wanted to note, the Cavs betting line to win the east is +4200.

That's 42x what you put in.

Could be a fun long shot. I definitely think it's selling the team short - especially considering the Knicks have the same odds.

 

[backstreet hooper]

Sexton in a new role and Agbaji will improve our offense. Also it wouldn’t surprise me if Markk, after his first year in a new team and his injury and covid issues, regained his 2020-2021 above 40% 3pt% form. And we will still have Love in the same role as last year. And I expect LeVert, who turns 28 this month and is at his peak year or two, to be sharper. Also, I don’t see the crowded guard position as a problem. We’ve got many capable guards now. It gives us more depth and makes them more efficient as they can share the minutes. This should help especially their defensive efforts with more intensity. Our bench should be clearly stronger than last season. And last, this team is young and hungry. A tightly knit group who will fight hard. Obviously the competition is tough and anything can happen, but I’m pretty optimistic. … And we’ve got 21-year-old Mobley. I can’t wait to see him in action again. … My prediction: in top five in the East.

 

[cavsfever]

I have Boston, Milwaukee, and Philly as the top three in the East barring major injury.

Who cares about the rest of it. It's just a block of "wait and see". A two week stretch can bend the Cavs into or out of the play-in.

Yeah I favor grouping teams by categories rather than individually. It's pretty clear Boston/Milwaukee/Philly are a rung above everyone else. Then Miami/NJ depending on if the Nets keep Durant and Kyrie (which I continue to think they can) and get Simmons to play. Then Chicago/Atlanta/Cleveland/Toronto all in a big bunch. Means we have a shot to avoid the play-in, but we also might not.

 

[MattyIce8]

With everything surrounding the disaster that is the Cleveland Browns, I can’t wait for Cavs basketball to be back

 

[buzzdog]

The Cavs are not proceeding with the intention of getting LeBron [James] for a third time," per Joe Vardon of The Athletic.​

The only rumors of LeBron leaving the Lakers are to play with his son Bronny. While a reunion with Cleveland to finish his career sounds like the perfect storybook ending, the team isn't planning for that to happen. They have a promising young core that would've made the playoffs last season if not for poor injury luck down the stretch. Led by Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley, the Cavs have a nice cornerstone trio to build around. Just waiting on LeBron to return and save them again isn't what they're going to do.

This is the correct approach. Deal from a position of power for a change.

 

[Wham with the Right Hand]

Fedor had this (his personal opinion):

James still wants to win. There’s no doubt about that. He used social media to express the pain of watching the playoffs this year. He isn’t spending the waning years of his storied career playing out the string, soaking up the sun, counting his billions and reflecting on the glory days with a middling team that has no chance at a championship.

At this point, based on last year's 33-49 record, the lack of cap space to improve the roster, the lack of a first round pick this year, and an aging Russell Westbrook, the Lakers look like "a middling team that has no chance at a championship".

Maybe not even a middling team. They were 11th in a 15-team conference last year That is not middling. Middling is their ceiling.

So if there is "no doubt" that LeBron still wants to win, he needs to go somewhere else. Somewhere with a young, deep roster so he doesn't have to play 37 minutes for 82 games just to get his team to the play-in. Somewhere where he can play 25-28 minutes a game and take off the second night of back-to-backs and still end up on a top four seed. A team where he can coast through the season and then ramp it up in the playoffs. A team that will have cap space next year when a certain $30 million power forward salary comes off the books.

Any suggestions as to where he might go?