2022 Off-season Thread - The Future is Bright

[Cement]

Send them to the bench where they belong on this roster.

Yep - on a good team, Levert and especially Okoro shouldn't be getting 30+ minutes. Maybe not even 20.

 

[cavsfever]

No one is disagreeing that the Cavs have work to do. I think you outlined their biggest offseason needs right here.

On the other hand, I already wrote my piece on why I dont think there are 5 clear locks the way you seem to think. You can refer to that post.

And this Cavs team is in a much different place than the 2018 Pistons. That was a team that had been floundering as a borderline playoff team for a few years, burned the bank for a last push with Blake, and barely scrapped into the playoffs. The Cavs are a rising team with young, developing talent that was playing on a 50 win pace with our core healthy. We are closer to a 2011 OKC or 2018 Nuggets. You keep underselling what the Cavs have accomplished this year by reducing their season to "another lottery outing"

If we are 2011 OKC who is our Kevin Durant? If we are 2018 Nuggets then who is our Nikola Jokic?

People will be tempted to say Mobley but the fact is that he has not yet shown an offensive ceiling anywhere close to those guys.

 

[Dr No]

I feel like there is too much redundancy in terms of personnel.

Sexton and LeVert are similar players, so are Okoro and Stevens, and Love and Wade. Love is better offensively and Wade defensively, but they're both about equal as backups to Mobley at PF.

The big decision is whether to stay the course and go with the roster we have now, figuring we'll add two first round picks in Sexton and the #14? Also, there will be internal improvement by our young players, especially Mobley.

Or do we make a big move, putting together a package that includes the #14 pick, LeVert or Sexton, and another piece like Okoro or Stevens for a dynamic 2 guard?

My preference is that they set everything up to win big in 2023-24, after the contracts of Love, LeVert, Cedi, Windler, and Okoro come off the books, freeing up over $65 million. At that point you build the team around Garland, Allen, Mobley, Markkanen, and this year's draft pick. Garland will get a big chunk of that money and if Sexton is still around he'll need to get paid. But I don't think he will be.

Start with those five, extend Wade and Stevens, and use the remaining $40 million or so after Garland gets paid to add two talented players whose skills complement the core group.

Any moves made this off-season should be with 2023-24 in mind, not next year.

I like this plan since both Wade & Stevens can guard the 3. I would add a legitimate backup point guard and center if possible.

 

[Alec]

I feel like there is too much redundancy in terms of personnel.

Sexton and LeVert are similar players, so are Okoro and Stevens, and Love and Wade. Love is better offensively and Wade defensively, but they're both about equal as backups to Mobley at PF.

The big decision is whether to stay the course and go with the roster we have now, figuring we'll add two first round picks in Sexton and the #14? Also, there will be internal improvement by our young players, especially Mobley.

Or do we make a big move, putting together a package that includes the #14 pick, LeVert or Sexton, and another piece like Okoro or Stevens for a dynamic 2 guard?

My preference is that they set everything up to win big in 2023-24, after the contracts of Love, LeVert, Cedi, Windler, and Okoro come off the books, freeing up over $65 million. At that point you build the team around Garland, Allen, Mobley, Markkanen, and this year's draft pick. Garland will get a big chunk of that money and if Sexton is still around he'll need to get paid. But I don't think he will be.

Start with those five, extend Wade and Stevens, and use the remaining $40 million or so after Garland gets paid to add two talented players whose skills complement the core group.

Any moves made this off-season should be with 2023-24 in mind, not next year.

Either way you cut it, this team MUST add a scoring wing to have a chance at true contention in the next few years. every pick, every contract is huge.

 

[CavsKermit]

Either way you cut it, this team MUST add a scoring wing to have a chance at true contention in the next few years. every pick, every contract is huge.

It's not just a scoring wing, a shooting wing. LeVert is a scoring wing but due where he likes to score, it's a problem for him on this roster.

 

[foucault87]

Atlanta is better than us. Did you not watch the game last night? The Nets are better than us. Did you watch the game on Wednesday? Chicago was as injury riddled as we are but finished ahead of us.

We are a team on the rise but making up a bunch of stories about how we are better than teams who beat us on the court won’t make us a top team

We got outplayed in a best of one series twice. In the NBA that can happen between any two teams. We were the higher seed vs Atl and held the lead over Bkn for 90% of the season. The fact of the matter is, we are the better team. Chicago was neck and neck with us all year but they did finish above us. Next year, it will be a different story

If we are 2011 OKC who is our Kevin Durant? If we are 2018 Nuggets then who is our Nikola Jokic?

People will be tempted to say Mobley but the fact is that he has not yet shown an offensive ceiling anywhere close to those guys.

There is more than one way to build an elite team. Our build will be closer to SAS with an elite defense and a solid to great offense rather than the OKC or Denver all in builds.

 

[Heat Check]

It's not just a scoring wing, a shooting wing. LeVert is a scoring wing but due where he likes to score, it's a problem for him on this roster.

Every single player we bring in from now on must be able to shoot from the outside.

It's about building an environment for Mobley AND Garland to succeed in.

 

[B Mac]

As I’m sure you guys are aware, I didn’t want to judge the LeVert transaction until we had some more time to evaluate. With the Cavs retaining their pick in this draft the trade looks a whole lot different.

With that said, I am curious what kind of money LeVert is truly looking at. I wonder if the Cavs can get a discount knowing that he’s had injury concerns, is now playing in Ohio, and is on an upcoming team.

If he would bite on a three year deal closer to a $15 million average, that’s something I think the Cavs have to go after. It keeps him a tradeable asset and the money wouldn’t dictate he had to be a starter if a better option comes available.

Closer to $20 million and longer than 3 years? I think you just let next season play out and reevaluate in the summer of 2023. There’s really no rush or pressure for the Cavs to make a deal. I think most of the risk is on Caris which I hope allows the Cavs to lock him up closer to their terms.

 

[Jscc]

If we are 2011 OKC who is our Kevin Durant? If we are 2018 Nuggets then who is our Nikola Jokic?

People will be tempted to say Mobley but the fact is that he has not yet shown an offensive ceiling anywhere close to those guys.

Probably because those two were MVP candidates in their primes and Mobley just finished his first season? Mobley's offensive numbers as a rookie are better than rookie Kevin Garnett's and are very comparable to rookie Jokic's. Denver made better use of Jokic's play-making abilities than the Cavs did (Jokic had a higher assist percentage), but they still ended their respective rookie seasons with the same apg.

 

[CavsKermit]

As I’m sure you guys are aware, I didn’t want to judge the LeVert transaction until we had some more time to evaluate. With the Cavs retaining their pick in this draft the trade looks a whole lot different.

With that said, I am curious what kind of money LeVert is truly looking at. I wonder if the Cavs can get a discount knowing that he’s had injury concerns, is now playing in Ohio, and is on an upcoming team.

If he would bite on a three year deal closer to a $15 million average, that’s something I think the Cavs have to go after. It keeps him a tradeable asset and the money wouldn’t dictate he had to be a starter if a better option comes available.

Closer to $20 million and longer than 3 years? I think you just let next season play out and reevaluate in the summer of 2023. There’s really no rush or pressure for the Cavs to make a deal. I think most of the risk is on Caris which I hope allows the Cavs to lock him up closer to their terms.

He's not a rookie deal. The Cavs can extend him at any point next season. There should be no extension this summer IMO. You have another season to evaluate if he works on the roster, use it.

 

[B Mac]

He's not a rookie deal. The Cavs can extend him at any point next season. There should be no extension this summer IMO. You have another season to evaluate if he works on the roster, use it.

Yep. No rush at all for the Cavs. It was part of the reason I was more for the trade than many. He gives the Cavs a lot of financial flexibility and trade options if they decide he’s not a longer term fit.

He has his warts, but on a team friendly deal it makes him look a lot better.

 

[Mr. Orange]

Focault is falling for the homer trap of looking at our bad luck and ignoring other teams luck. You can’t assume we get a Rubio level backup either. Each season is independent of the other. Top 6 is no given.

 

[foucault87]

Focault is falling for the homer trap of looking at our bad luck and ignoring other teams luck. You can’t assume we get a Rubio level backup either. Each season is independent of the other. Top 6 is no given.

Says the guy who was giving the Bulls a free pass for their injuries but not ours. Lol. I am projecting on the improvement of our existing young core which is very probable

 

[CavsKermit]

Yep. No rush at all for the Cavs. It was part of the reason I was more for the trade than many. He gives the Cavs a lot of financial flexibility and trade options if they decide he’s not a longer term fit.

He has his warts, but on a team friendly deal it makes him look a lot better.

I worry that what other NBA front offices might view as a team-friendly deal for LeVert and what LeVert might view as fair aren't even in the same ballpark. The Rockets didn't want him in the Harden trade on his current contract. After a little more than a year on their roster, the Pacers were happy to move him on his current contract.

 

[Heat Check]

If he would bite on a three year deal closer to a $15 million average, that’s something I think the Cavs have to go after. It keeps him a tradeable asset and the money wouldn’t dictate he had to be a starter if a better option comes available.

I don't think there's much of a market for LeVert around the league. Particularly after a bad showing with this team.

He should definitely be coming off the bench if he's still on the Cavs next season, but a demotion would decrease his value even further. There are no good options, which isn't a surprise – it was a bad trade and now we're paying the price.