How strong are the Cavs now?

[jonbob17]

East is going to be tough.

[mcfly1204]

A rich man's version of the Lillard\McCollum Portland teams?...

But Portland never had 2 mobile defensive bigs playing together on the front line. Cavs were the 7th ranked defense last, and probably would have finished higher without the non-stop injuries.

That's the point. Dame and CJ made it to the WCF with Nurckic, Aminu, and Mo Harkless. This Cavs squad could be scary good.

[TheLand13]

A rich man's version of the Lillard\McCollum Portland teams?...

But Portland never had 2 mobile defensive bigs playing together on the front line. Cavs were the 7th ranked defense last, and probably would have finished higher without the non-stop injuries.

That's the point. Dame and CJ made it to the WCF with Nurckic, Aminu, and Mo Harkless. This Cavs squad could be scary good.

Above all else, they have a bench unit consisting of Love (who was second in sixth man of the year voting last season), Rubio, Levert, Osman, and Lopez. I don't think people who don't follow Cleveland regularly realize just how deep this team is.

[dacrusha]

They're only as good as Garland's highest potential... if he's turns into an MVP candidate, they are championship contenders for sure.

[Dubnation]

Strong enough for LeBron to plan his third stint there.

Read on Twitter

?s=20&t=40TZIdj78P_fubPZ85hypg

[SinceGatlingWasARookie]

60 wins and title contenders if they can stay healthy and play hard and play as a team to the degree that they did last year.

Injuries happen to gys who are young and were never injury prone. Jazz have done OK with this trade and if the Cavaliers fail to achieve what I expect the Jazz could do very well in this trade.

Now watch, LeBron is going to decide that he wants to retire as a Cavalier.

[cupcakesnake]

But Portland never had 2 mobile defensive bigs playing together on the front line. Cavs were the 7th ranked defense last, and probably would have finished higher without the non-stop injuries.

That's the point. Dame and CJ made it to the WCF with Nurckic, Aminu, and Mo Harkless. This Cavs squad could be scary good.

Above all else, they have a bench unit consisting of Love (who was second in sixth man of the year voting last season), Rubio, Levert, Osman, and Lopez. I don't think people who don't follow Cleveland regularly realize just how deep this team is.

I keep forgetting Love is on the team. They're going to be able to create some big-scoring bench units.

[mcfly1204]

They're only as good as Garland and Mobley's highest potential... if either turns into an MVP candidate, they are championship contenders for sure.

FTFY

[TheNewEra]

I was already high on Cleveland before the trade. I figured they'd be fighting for homecourt in the East this year. Last year they managed a 7th ranked defense, despite all the injuries. The mobility of Mobley and Allen in the frontcourt makes up for their lack of a good defensive wing (people keep saying Okoro but to me he's a little too small to be a starting defensive 3 in the NBA).

I already thought their offense was going to improve with Sexton in the rotation, and now they've upgraded him to Donovan Mitchell: an absolutely excellent combination of slashing and pull-up 3-point shooting. Spidey will struggle with interior passing again (Allen wont love him anymore than Gobert did) but this team has Garland to feed the bigs, as well as Rubio coming off the bench, if he's healthy.

I think their frontcourt once again gives them a chance at a top 10 defense. Now their backcourt gives them a chance at a top 10 offense. I think the Cavs are going to be a serious problem immediately.

They honestly remind me a little of the Timberwolves now, built around dual bigs and dual guards like that. They probably have a higher long-term ceiling than the Wolves too, with all that youth.

I don't really like Donovan Mitchell very much, but I already got on the Cavs bandwagon and I'm not getting off.

I love the versatility more for the Cavs over the Wolves two bigs. Allen and Mobley are not to the same extremes as Towns(scoring) and Gobert (defense) but they are much better fits. Allen and Mobley should contribute more on both ends balance wise and have experience playing off each other.

[Salieri]

As I pointed out in another thread, I seriously doubt Levert will be starting at SF, especially now that they have a secondary ball handler to help run the offense. Okoro will most likely be the one starting at that spot, and he's a very good defensive player who has an improving three point shot.

Now does having two 6'1 players hurt the Cavaliers defensively? Sure. But Mitchell is still an upgrade over Sexton in that regard so the results won't be as bad as that was. And not to mention, this significantly improves the Cavaliers offense to the point where I don't even care if it does make our defense worse. It's a great move on Cleveland's part.

If Okoro can become a useful offensive player then I agree, LeVert is not as much of an issue.

I am not an Okoro believer, though. He has been really, really bad on offense through his first two years. We’ll see.

He's definitely limited. But he improved his three-point shooting to basically league average (35%) in year 2.

Can he maintain it moving forward? He'll have a lot of open looks.

I really like the trade for Cleveland. A young lineup that should be competing for possibly 50 wins now... AND room for improvement.

That's all they need really. If he can become a 3+D type of player, he will fit like a glove. There are plenty of ball handlers in the Cavs, he won't need to do anything else on offense other than shoot the ball at a respectable clip when he gets it.

I'm very curious to see Cavs' rotations, I'm willing to bet they will be more staggered than people think right now. Rubio can't come back soon enough.

All in all, very exciting team, must watch for next season IMO.

[cupcakesnake]

I was already high on Cleveland before the trade. I figured they'd be fighting for homecourt in the East this year. Last year they managed a 7th ranked defense, despite all the injuries. The mobility of Mobley and Allen in the frontcourt makes up for their lack of a good defensive wing (people keep saying Okoro but to me he's a little too small to be a starting defensive 3 in the NBA).

I already thought their offense was going to improve with Sexton in the rotation, and now they've upgraded him to Donovan Mitchell: an absolutely excellent combination of slashing and pull-up 3-point shooting. Spidey will struggle with interior passing again (Allen wont love him anymore than Gobert did) but this team has Garland to feed the bigs, as well as Rubio coming off the bench, if he's healthy.

I think their frontcourt once again gives them a chance at a top 10 defense. Now their backcourt gives them a chance at a top 10 offense. I think the Cavs are going to be a serious problem immediately.

They honestly remind me a little of the Timberwolves now, built around dual bigs and dual guards like that. They probably have a higher long-term ceiling than the Wolves too, with all that youth.

I don't really like Donovan Mitchell very much, but I already got on the Cavs bandwagon and I'm not getting off.

I love the versatility more for the Cavs over the Wolves two bigs. Allen and Mobley are not to the same extremes as Towns(scoring) and Gobert (defense) but they are much better fits. Allen and Mobley should contribute more on both ends balance wise and have experience playing off each other.

Mobley and Allen already fit. I keep hearing people talk about how Mobley is a center long term, and always feel: sure but have you watched him play with Allen? They're really good!

Gobert/Kat is the biggest question mark in the league. On one hand, pairing one of the best defensive players with one of the best offensive players in the same frontcourt sounds pretty great. But we have no idea how the overall offense or defense is going to go when these 2 share the court. The potential for disaster exists until we see it proven otherwise. And this is the mf Timberwolves we're talking about. We always have to assume it's going to be a disaster.

I'm optimistic about the Gobert/Kat fit. But as the neutral fan that I am, I'd rather have Mobley/Allen due to age and fit. Gobert and Kat are both better individual players as of this present moment, but the Cavs have the better long-term potential frontcourt.

[Catchall]

Mitchell and Mobley are pretty sick.

[cupcakesnake]

Isaac Okoro is 6'5" with average length (6'8.5" wingspan). People need to stop talking about him as a potential starting small forward in the NBA. Regardless of his 3-point shot, Okoro isn't going to be a big plus, defensively, as long as he has to play the 3. Too many giant 3s these days. He can survive at the 3, but I don't see him being a starter that his team is satisfied with.

[MartyConlonOnTheRun]

Top-4 team

I don't think it is a top 4 in the East. Boston, Heat, Milwaukee, Philly, Nets. which TWO are you kicking out?

[taikibansei]

Top-4 team

I don't think it is a top 4 in the East. Boston, Heat, Milwaukee, Philly, Nets. which TWO are you kicking out?

With Ben "Barely Played" Simmons and "Crazy Kyrie" as their core--and with KD another year older (34)--the Nets are more likely to self-destruct than to compete for a top-4 spot.

Though they might need a full year to gel, I think the Cavs have a chance of knocking out the Heat from the top-4 as soon as next season.

[Mr Loggins]

Not a bad rebuild at all by Altman…and “only” one top 3 pick to do it with

[bon]

Isaac Okoro is 6'5" with average length (6'8.5" wingspan). People need to stop talking about him as a potential starting small forward in the NBA. Regardless of his 3-point shot, Okoro isn't going to be a big plus, defensively, as long as he has to play the 3. Too many giant 3s these days. He can survive at the 3, but I don't see him being a starter that his team is satisfied with.

Lauri was their starting SF last season. Right now they have a noticeable hole there that I'm not sure who else on that roster can fill.

[Im Coming Home]

Major overpay, they better hope this deal works.

[Pantsman]

Isaac Okoro is 6'5" with average length (6'8.5" wingspan). People need to stop talking about him as a potential starting small forward in the NBA. Regardless of his 3-point shot, Okoro isn't going to be a big plus, defensively, as long as he has to play the 3. Too many giant 3s these days. He can survive at the 3, but I don't see him being a starter that his team is satisfied with.

Lauri was there starting SF last season. Right now they have a noticeable hole there that I'm not sure who else on that roster can fill.

If lavert comes back to form he’s their best SF. But will probably come off the bench. Also cedi was pretty good last year.

[BrianInPhilly]

I followed the Cavs closely last year - when Markanan was out at least 90% of the time Dean Wade or Stevens started in his place. I see few people mentioning them. 1 of those 2 guys is your starting 3 in my opinion. Stevens is that dog to cover for the backcourt while Wade provides more spacing while being an average defender at least.

They really need a good system/structure to unlock this team. We’ll see. Mobley has to be a major focal point of what they run. And I still dislike LeVert - he’s not going enough shooting wise or defense wise to play a productive role on this team. Would rather see his minutes go to Okoro, Stevens, & Wade.