Garland-LeVert-Markkanen-Mobley-Allen came in at the No. 11 spot in Bleacher Report’s rankings of all 30 NBA projected starting lineups.
CLEVELAND — The NBA Draft has come and gone, the Summer League wrapped up and rosters are starting to narrow closer to what they’ll ultimately be when the league tips off the 2022-2023 season on October 19.
The Cleveland Cavaliers finished last year’s campaign wondering what could have been after a storybook first half was slowly wilted away by a rash of injuries to key players before finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference, ultimately losing to the Brooklyn Nets and the Atlanta Hawks in the play -in tournament.
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The NBA offseason certainly hasn’t been without fireworks over the past few months. All-Stars on the move, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving likely on their way out of Brooklyn, and draft picks that won’t be selected until your newborn child is in kindergarten being traded away as teams look to race to the top of the NBA .
The Cavs haven’t been quiet either. While many teams looking to make the next step in their development traded away assets well into the latter half of this decade, the Cavs selected four-year college starter Ochai Agbaji from Kansas with the last pick of the lottery in the 2022 NBA Draft. They also brought back fan-favorite veteran guard Ricky Rubio, brought in Raul Neto as backcourt depth until Rubio is recovered from a torn ACL, shored up their front court depth with center Robin Lopez and signed All-Star point guard and budding superstar Darius Garland to the largest contract in team history.
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So where does that leave the Cavs going into the 2022-2023 season compared to the rest of the league? According to Bleacher Report, their roster and offseason moves leave them in a very good spot to grow on last year’s early success.
The Cavaliers, with a projected starting five of Darius Garland-Caris LeVert-Lauri Markkanen-Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen, came in at the No.11 spot in Bleacher Report’s rankings of all 30 NBA projected starting lineups and No. 5 in the Eastern Conference.
The Cavs’ starting five ranked ahead of teams like the Dallas Mavericks (12), Atlanta Hawks (13), Miami Heat (15), Toronto Raptors (16) and Chicago Bulls (18).
The only teams ahead of them in the East are the Boston Celtics (2), Philadelphia 76ers (3), Brooklyn Nets (6, for now) and the Milwaukee Bucks (9).
What is the X-Factor?
It’s no surprise that the young core of Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen turned heads and demanded respect after the leap all of them made throughout last year. However, it’s second-year budding superstar Evan Mobley that has many believing in the Cavs potential.
Mobley has the potential to be a true franchise-changing player and the full effects of what his game can bring to this team on the court hasn’t come close to being fully realized.
The top of the NBA truly does look wide open. Does that mean the young Cavaliers are primed to compete in that space next year? Probably not. But they also don’t have that many teams to leapfrog as the balance of power in the NBA over the last four or five years has greatly shifted from the Eastern Conference to the West.
A new core, a new identity and even a new look. The Cavs presence in the Eastern Conference playoff picture seems destined to be here to stay for a long, long time.
It may even be strong enough to convince an old friend from Akron to come back for last run. The best part about that? If it ultimately isn’t meant to be, 2014, we’ll still have a lot to look forward to.