Now that the Cleveland Cavaliers did not advance to the real playoffs, which started Saturday, it’s time to look towards the 2022-23 season, and there will be expectations for J.B. Bickerstaff and his squad.
It will no longer be a nice story to get close to the playoffs. The expectation by most observers, will be making one of the top five seeds in the Eastern Conference.
The question is how will that be accomplished.
Cleveland has to get better offensively. They were 20th in offensive rating this season and seventh defensively, although that ranking declined after the midway point of the campaign.
The Cavs should have Collin Sexton healthy heading into training camp, barring a trade. We say that because what assets does GM Koby Altman have to try to improve the wine and gold?
Kevin Love’s contract is now expiring, and that used to have value, but in the past few seasons, it has been less and less important. And Caris LeVert has one more year on his current deal. Does the front office want to extend him?
They have a lottery pick, which will likely be the 14th overall pick barring some extreme luck in the draft lottery. We feel the Cavaliers would be better off moving that pick for a veteran who can contribute immediately.
The team is young enough right now, and to us it is obvious someone with more experience would be a bigger help.
Altman and Bickerstaff have to decide what kind of team they want going forward. Early in the year, it used size, playing slower, and playing defense. It was an old school approach.
Is that the way they want to continue? We asked because in the second half of the season, they seemed to get away from that style. We know injuries played a big factor, but the Cavs did go 9-17 in their last 26 contests.
Can they play two smaller guards together and be effective on the defensive end?
One thing is for certain, the team needs some wings that can shoot the basketball, someone in the 6’7″-6’9″ range. Yes, Love does that, but good teams have more than one player like that, and with guys like Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley inside, having shooters will make them more effective.
Speaking of Mobley, no doubt he will get stronger in the off-season and be more of a force next season and beyond. With so much discussion about Garland’s improvement and being the team’s best player, he is just renting that title because next year, Mobley will likely be the Cavs’ premier star.
Altman also has to make the roster deeper. Coming into the season, he filled two spots, Kevin Pangos and Ed Davis, with players who can’t play in the NBA. That can’t happen this off-season.
And decisions have to be made on Dylan Windler, who either can’t be a rotation player on a good team or needs a fresh start somewhere else and Cedi Osman, who ended the year not in agreement with the coach.
Osman is another guy who plays much better in international competition, when he is used as a playmaker, a drive and dish guy. He’s not used that way with the Cavs, so other teams may have an interest in him.
Lamar Stevens played his way into having a future here, but can the same be said for Isaac Okoro? Okoro has not developed any kind of offensive game, and the question is can he? He’s another player who may have value for a young, developing team.
The Cavaliers are not that any more. They won 44 games in the regular season, double last year’s total. They should be thinking about a home series in the first round of the playoffs and advancing.
In many ways, this is a bigger off-season for Altman and management that the last three summers.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 