Big Summer For Many NBA Teams, Cavs Included

Well, it’s now official. The Cleveland Cavaliers will have the 14th overall pick in next month’s NBA Draft, although it would have been an extreme long shot for them to have moved up.

The Cavs are the best team, record wise, in the league that didn’t make the playoffs, and with a young core of Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen, this is an important off-season for GM Koby Altman and his staff.

However, it’s also an important summer for some of the league’s big market teams, and could anything those teams do influence the wine and gold?

What will the Los Angeles Lakers do? Yes, they have LeBron James, but their roster looks like one of a good team, in 2012. What do they do to surround James with the right kind of talent and can Anthony Davis ever stay healthy?

What of the Brooklyn Nets? Will they run back the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving show or totally restructure their roster, even moving the recently acquired Ben Simmons. They could be looking for a rebuild this summer.

The New York Knicks made the playoffs in 2020-21, but returned to their normal lottery spot last season. Are they satisfied with a Julius Randle and RJ Barrett combination going into the ’22-’23 season? And will they continue to hold Obi Toppin hostage?

What does this have to do with the Cavaliers? If those teams make big moves, cap space will probably be needed and perhaps Altman can pick up a nice piece for the Cavs because salaries do not match up.

Remember, that’s how Cleveland got Allen, a 23-year-old seven footer, who became an all star last season.

If you didn’t know, by rule, the Cavs cannot announce a trade of their first round draft pick before the selection is made. That pick is an asset though, and may be used to bring in a veteran player. We say veteran because we believe there is plenty of youth on the roster, so another young guy could be superfluous.

On the other hand, you might get an experienced college player who gets bypassed early in the draft because every team looks to project on players.

We have seen the Cavs linked to Kansas senior 6’5″ guard Ochai Agbaji. He could probably make a contribution right away, and at least one draft website compared him to Desmond Bane of Memphis. If he wound up being close to the player Bane is, that would be great.

The other player who seems like a good fit and may be available is Ohio State G Malaki Branham, also 6’5″. Just a freshman, he may take longer to be a contributor on a team that should have playoff asperations.

Altman also needs to decide on some bench players. It seems clear they don’t have a good handle on what to do with players like Cedi Osman and Dylan Windler, so it’s time to cut bait.

And no more roster spots for guys who can’t play, like Ed Davis, or bringing in someone like Kevin Pangos.

And make no mistake, barring injuries, the Cavaliers need to qualify for the real playoffs next season, meaning a best-of-seven series. No more play in games.

They made the giant leap to contender in 2021-22, and this young core of good players needs to get in the playoffs.

Cavs Should Be Looking At Top Four Spot in ’22-’23.

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.

Cavs Season: Encouraging And Disappointing.

The Cavaliers season came to a disappointing end Friday night, when they lost 107-101 to Atlanta in the NBA’s dumb (we thought this before the Cavs lost) play in tournament.

The game was kind of a microcosm of the wine and gold’s performance since the all-star game. They took a sizeable first half lead, 14 points was the largest, and then didn’t make any adjustments to what their opponent did defensively.

They started out shooting well from behind the three-point line, and when the shots stopped falling, they kept taking them anyway. They hit six threes in the first quarter, just seven in the last three periods.

Coach J.B. Bickerstaff tried to go defense in the second half, trying to protect the lead, but because the defensive players he used provide no offense, the Cavaliers scored just 40 points in the second half. Had they mustered 50, the Cavs would be playing today in Game 1 of a seven-game series against Miami.

Isaac Okoro and Rajon Rondo, the two players the coach went with, combined to go 2 for 6 from the field, 0 for 3 from distance and scored six points. Meanwhile, Kevin Love, perhaps the team’s best outside shooter outside of Darius Garland, played just 10 minutes and scored three points.

Darius Garland, Cleveland’s best player down the stretch, played poorly, hitting just 9 of 27 shots, including 1 of 7 from three. The Hawks started pressuring Garland as soon as he crossed half court, and the Cavs didn’t do anything to counter.

And after Hawks’ big man Clint Capela was injured late in the first half and did not return to the game, Cleveland didn’t really try to exploit this by getting the ball inside to Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, and Lauri Markkanen.

And of course, Love wasn’t used until late in the fourth quarter.

The Cavs based their early season success on playing three seven footers on the back line, playing at a slower pace, and defense, they ranked in the top three defensively early in the year.

As the season went on, injuries forced them to use a smaller center/forward combination, the pace quickened, and the defense slipped, finishing seventh for the season.

Why didn’t the style and attitude sustain itself? That’s a question for Bickerstaff. It could have been because the early success made the players think they could take short cuts, but there was a definite difference from how the team played early in the season and how they played at the end of the year.

Yes, the Cavaliers had plenty of injuries this season. Everyone of their starters missed at least 10 games during the season. Evan Mobley led the team in games played with 69, and only Garland played more than 65. We are sure that was a major challenge for the coaching staff, but it makes even more sense that Bickerstaff needed to emphasize the core values.

The organization has a big summer ahead. They get to keep their first round pick, which they dealt to Indiana for Caris LeVert, but it was lottery protected. They need to make the roster deeper, and they need to evaluate players like Okoro, Dylan Windler, and even Cedi Osman to see if they are worth keeping.

Collin Sexton will be back, but where and how does he fit in?

And we know Bickerstaff just signed an extension, but his coaching in the two play in games had to raise some eyebrows.

The Cavs took a strong step forward this season, but still, it can be considered a disappointment because of a 9-17 finish and not getting to a seven game playoff series.

That will take some honest evaluation. Here’s hoping a self-audit will be successful.

Cavs Need To Regain Early Season Style This Week

It is okay to change expectations of your favorite team once a season starts.

Before the 2021-22 NBA season started, we were projecting the Cleveland Cavaliers would take a jump from their 22 victories last season to around 30 wins this year. They far exceeded that number, piling up 44 wins, double last year’s total.

And that’s great. The organization seems to be headed in the right direction, with a young core of players, all-stars Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, and a player who is a favorite to win Rookie of the Year honors in Evan Mobley.

However, on February 11th, the expectations were far greater. After beating Indiana, the Cavs were sitting at 35-21 and a first round home playoff series was in sight.

Perhaps we were all being naïve. After, many younger NBA teams start the season well and the veteran teams catch up as the season progresses. But it seemed like the young guys wearing the wine and gold had a formula for winning. They were a defensive first team that played with what their coach, J.B. Bickerstaff called “grit” and “scrap”.

Then the all star break hit and so did the injuries.

All three of the star players missed parts of the second half and the style of play changed. The defensive mindset seemed to wane, the grit and scrap weren’t as prevalent. The latter should not have departed with Garland, Allen, and Mobley.

GM Koby Altman swung a trade before the deadline to bring in Caris LeVert, but he was injured too, and when he came back, it didn’t seem like he fit in. There were games where he was a key part of the offense, and others were it felt like he was an outsider.

So the Cavs fell into the “play in” tournament and as the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference, they have two shots to get into a seven game series, and to us, this is a needed step for the future of this group. They need to experience what the playoffs are like and apply that to how they prepare for the 2022-23 campaign.

Their best hope to win one of these games, and if they lose at Brooklyn tonight, they will play either Charlotte or Atlanta at home on Friday to be the 8th seed, is to get back to the style that brought them to that 35-21 record.

Slow the pace, play defense, and run when you get the opportunity. All of these teams have dynamic point guards that need to be controlled. They have to be kept out of the paint where the interior defender have to provide constant help.

Supposedly Allen will not be available tonight against the Nets, and if he isn’t, we would start Moses Brown at center with Mobley and Lauri Markkanen on the front line. That’s how the Cavs played most of the season, especially when they were winning. Size.

It also allows Mobley to provide weak side help as a shot blocker and to be able to concentrate on Kevin Durant on the perimeter.

Playing like they have over the last six weeks seems like a recipe to go home at the end of the week. Hopefully JB can get that message across to his young squad before tonight’s game.

No Time To Settle For Cavs Now

The Cleveland Cavaliers have already clinched the opportunity to play additional games after the regular season ends. However, injuries continue to plague the young Cavs.

In addition to Jarrett Allen being out, Evan Mobley went down with a sprained ankle Monday night, and hopefully will be back later this week. At 20 years old, he should be a fast healer.

With all the injuries, we are hearing it would be best if the wine and gold would lose in the play in tournament, and thus keep their first round draft pick.

That’s a losing, defeatist attitude.

While it is true no one thought Cleveland would finish with an above .500 record at the beginning of the season, the team isn’t satisfied with that, and neither should the fan base.

Even if the Cavaliers lose in the first round, and quite frankly, it is likely they will, because the top four teams in the East, Milwaukee, Boston, Miami, and Philadelphia, are very good, the experience they will gain will be a huge benefit next season.

And they should also do everything they can to get into the top six in the Eastern Conference, so they don’t have to go through the mini tournament.

No doubt it will be difficult with the injuries, particularly if Mobley misses a handful of games, because much of the success the team had was because of playing the two big men together.

In order to succeed without two of their three best players, the Cavs need to return to the “grit and scrap” they played with earlier in the season. Monday night against Orlando, coach J.B. Bickerstaff went with Lamar Stevens and Dylan Windler down the stretch, and it worked because they played solid defense.

It won’t be easy with games on the road against Atlanta and New York this week, and three of the remaining four games after that trip are against the Sixers, Nets, and Bucks. And only two of the games left will be played at home.

And the Cavs will need players to step up. Moses Brown figures to get some time, perhaps Cedi Osman will emerge from Bickerstaff’s doghouse. They will also need offense from Lamar Stevens and Isaac Okoro.

It would also be nice if Windler A). Wasn’t afraid to shoot and B). Made a couple of shots. His attitude right now seems to be he can’t miss a shot if he doesn’t take it.

We also have to take exception to criticism of Caris LeVert. Yes, we know he isn’t averaging 18 points per game and he’s only shooting a little over 40%. But the other night, he kept taking the ball to the basket, and that’s a welcome sight at times, because too often lately, the Cavaliers start settling for the three point shot.

It’s particularly maddening when they need a hoop to stop the opponents’ run. That’s when you need to work for a good look. LeVert tries to get that good look. It hasn’t gone in often, but we think it will soon.

With six games left in the regular season, this isn’t the time to be complacent or settle for just a winning record. Use the toughness the Cavs had early in the year and gut your way through until Allen and Mobley are back.

We are sure that’s what Bickerstaff wants.

Time For Cavs To Get Back To Defensive Mindset

Two games before the NBA All Star weekend, the Cleveland Cavaliers beat Indiana to improve their record to 35-21. They lost the next two games leading up to the break, both on the road to Philadelphia and Atlanta.

Since that victory over the Pacers, the wine and gold have gone 6-10.

Injuries have certainly been a problem. Lauri Markkanen and Darius Garland both missed some time, and most recently, Jarrett Allen has missed the last eight games with a broken finger.

After the first two games of the season, when the Cavs allowed 132 and 123 points, the new philosophy of defense took hold, and Cleveland became one of the better defensive teams in the NBA, with a front line featuring three players 6’11” or taller.

Prior to that game against the Pacers, the team’s high water mark of the year record wise, the Cavs had held opponents under 100 points 23 times. Since the all star game, in 14 games, Cleveland has only does this twice, and they haven’t done it since Allen went out against Toronto on March 6th.

Granted, Allen is a very good rim protector and blocks 1.3 shots per game in addition to grabbing almost 11 rebounds per night. But really, that’s not where the defensive issues have been.

While Cleveland is scoring almost four points per game more than they were before the break, they are also giving up almost 11 points more. That’s frightening.

Before the all star break, the Cavs allowed 34% shooting from behind the three point line. Since, that percentage is up to 38.6. They really have not defended the long range shooting well after resuming play.

Now, you could say luck is a factor, but in watching the games, it is disturbing to see the wide open looks opposing shooters have beyond the arc. In Monday’s terrible loss to the Lakers (terrible because the Lakers are not a good team), veteran D.J. Augustin came into the game and it appeared Cleveland didn’t notice because he had several wide open shots immediately after checking in.

Coach J.B. Bickerstaff established, after those first two games, a defensive, gritty mindset. His players bought in to that. But lately, we see more attempts to play up tempo, and right now, the Cavs only have a few players who can thrive in that style.

With the playoffs on the horizon, the Cavaliers need to get back to the defensive, slow it down mindset they had previously.

We aren’t saying not to push the ball up the floor when the opportunity presents itself, you have to take advantage of easy offense.

But there are too many possessions lately in the half court game, where there is just one or two guys touching the basketball. They need to make their opponents play harder on the defensive end.

And tonight’s game at Toronto would be a good time to start. A win would essentially put them three games up on the Raptors for the sixth spot, and it would also put the wine and gold in a decent spot to move up to the fifth seed in the East.

The Cavs need to get back to the style that put them in this spot to begin with. With just 10 games remaining, it’s not too late.

Bring Back LeBron? Not That Simple.

Ever since the All Star Game in Cleveland and the comments made by LeBron James about his home area during the festivities, there have been rumors or speculation that James would consider coming back to the Cavaliers, especially now that the wine and gold are playing winning basketball.

James is 37 years old, but is still playing at an amazingly high level. He is currently averaging 29.4 points per game, the highest since the end of his first tenure in Cleveland, way back in ’09-’10.

He poured in 56 points on Friday night against Golden State, and you can still make an excellent case that he is the most dominant talent in the NBA, even in what figures to be the twilight of his career.

Adding James to the current Cavaliers’ roster would make them the favorites to hang a second NBA title banner from the rafters of Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.

However, it isn’t as simple as that. It never is when it comes to LeBron James.

First, James is owed $44 million next year on the last year of his contract, so even if he told the Lakers he wanted out, the Cleveland would still have to make the numbers work in terms of the salary cap.

And of course, the Lakers would want something in return, a very good player more than likely to pair with Anthony Davis.

Would Koby Altman want to part with either of his new “Big Three”, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, or Evan Mobley to get a player, even a player with James’ greatness, who will turn 38 years old.

We know James keeps himself in pristine shape. Still, Father Time is undefeated and no one knows when age will creep up for The King. So, let’s say the Cavaliers are willing to give up Allen to the Lakers, and they only get one great season out of James?

That would be throwing away the rebuilding done by the front office over the last four years.

If James were to come back and just be a player and fit in with the current corps, there wouldn’t be any problems, correct? James can do whatever is needed on the court. He can score. He’s just around 1600 points from becoming the all-time leading scorer in NBA history.

He can rebound, averaging 8.1 this season, and the last time he was under 7.5 for a season, the Cavs won the 2016 championship.

And we all know he can pass. Two seasons ago, he led the league in assists. People who know the game say, he is a pass first player and is going to wind up as the greatest scorer in history.

We know James and his people wouldn’t just join the team and fit in. He would start making suggestions about adding veterans to the mix, he would rather play with guys who have been in the league.

He might start second guessing J.B. Bickerstaff or perhaps Altman. And he might put some burdens on the salary cap that will remain long after he is gone.

The latter might be a problem since the core of this team figures to be here for a while.

While bringing LeBron James back would make the Cavs instant championship contenders, they might be in the same position in two or three years without bringing him.

As we said earlier, it’s just not as simple as getting him and plugging him in. And it’s Koby Altman’s job to figure whether or not it’s the right move to make.

All-Star Break Comes Just At Right Time For Cavs

The All-Star break came at the right time for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Because Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse is being readied for this weekend’s festivities, the Cavs ended the first half on a three game trip, winning only one, but giving up over 100 points in each.

The last two games, they were the victims of yeoman efforts by Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Atlanta’s Trae Young, so we guess if opponents need superhuman performances to beat Cleveland, that’s probably a good thing.

Still, the Cavaliers looked a bit tired in these three games, and it’s more difficult to play defense when you are fatigued. And remember, defense is this team’s calling card.

So, even though many Cavs are participating in the weekend’s event (at least they don’t have to travel), the nine days off until their next contest, February 24th at Detroit, could be just what this group needs, particularly the three players who have played the most minutes: rookie Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, and Darius Garland.

Sitting at 35-23, if J.B. Bickerstaff’s club simply plays .500 basketball from here on out, the wine and gold would finish at 47-35, and that most certainly should get them in the top six in the Eastern Conference.

But the schedule is home friendly once play resumes. Of the 24 contests remaining, only 10 will be away from RMFH, and the only long trip left is a three game sojourn to Indiana, Miami, and Chicago in early March.

On the opposite side they are several games on the slate against teams fighting for playoff spots and/or post-season positioning, including three more with Philadelphia, two with the Bulls, and two more against Toronto.

Those games likely will be filled with playoff intensity, which is a good thing for a young team like the Cavs.

The break also helps the health of the team. It should give Garland’s back to get some rest, even though he will play in the All-Star Game on Sunday, and when Cleveland returns to action, you would think Lauri Markkanen will be back in the starting lineup.

We see a lot of people trying to replace him as a starter, but we believe he is more needed than many think.

He adds yet another seven-footer to the starting lineup, and he is able to stay with big people playing on the perimeter offensively.

And there cannot be any doubt Markkanen is a better offensive option than Dean Wade. Wade still is hesitant to shoot at times, and Markkanen has the ability to take the ball to the basket better if opponents crowd him outside.

We also think it is time to start Caris LeVert at the #2 guard spot and bring Isaac Okoro off the bench.

Putting LeVert with the first unit (and Markkanen’s return) should give Allen and Mobley more room to operate inside and give driving lanes for Garland and LeVert.

Having Okoro out there with two threats from the perimeter like Kevin Love and Cedi Osman means he doesn’t have to be counted on for outside shooting, and he can attack the basket.

And of course, if you have the lead in the fourth quarter, you can always have Okoro on the floor to do what he does best…defend.

We are sure the success the Cavaliers have enjoyed this season will be a major story line at All-Star Weekend. Who would have predicted that before this season commenced?

Fans should enjoy the events and the Cavs’ players should enjoy the time off. Because the home stretch starts in a little over a week.

Cavs Are Fun, But It’s Time To Expect Success

Since the Cleveland Browns’ season ended last month, the sports focus of the city, other than the obsession with Baker Mayfield, has been on the Cleveland Cavaliers, and rightly so.

Not many people figured this would be a playoff year for the wine and gold, but as of today, they sit tied for the third best record in the Eastern Conference at 34-21, and they were buyers at the trade deadline, getting Caris LeVert from Indiana.

They have already exceeded the 30 wins we predicted they would get this season, and quite frankly, a 50 win season wouldn’t be a big shock.

Most of the commentary in the media has been about how much fun J.B. Bickerstaff’s club is to watch, and after three years of being among the worst teams in the NBA, absolutely it is a joy to watch this team play.

The thing that makes all this winning fun is the lack of expectation. No one expected the Cavaliers to be in this position. Fans were looking forward to the development of Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, and were anxious to see how rookie Evan Mobley would hold up under the grind of an 82 game schedule.

And no one figured Kevin Love would be drinking from the fountain of youth, playing his most energetic and enthusiastic basketball since perhaps 2016.

There are no impending free agencies on the horizon, save for Collin Sexton this summer, so Koby Altman doesn’t have to tiptoe around making players want to stay in Cleveland. This is just about basketball and putting together a team.

How far can they go this spring and summer?

Five of the primary players on this edition of the Cavs are under 25 years old: Garland, Mobley, Isaac Okoro, Jarrett Allen, and Lauri Markkanen. We didn’t include Sexton because he’s not playing right now.

Of that quintet, only Allen has ever appeared in a playoff game, being in nine of them with Brooklyn in 2019 and 2020. He’s played in one winning post-season contest. Newcomer LeVert has the exact same experience.

On the other hand, Love, Cedi Osman, and Rajon Rondo have plenty of playoff experience. Heck, Rondo even has a nickname (Playoff Rondo) built around his 134 games of experience. Love’s been in 63 post-season games and Osman 14.

You notice all of the experience is coming off the bench.

A realistic expectation for this group probably depends on whether or not they end up in the top four of the conference, which would mean home court advantage in the first round. And even then, it depends on the matchup.

Having to play say Philadelphia or Brooklyn in the first round would be very difficult for these young Cavs, because of having an opponent with a great player who has a tremendous amount of post-season experience.

It would be great to win a title for sure, but ideally, winning one series could be a stepping stone for this group. It will show them what playing in the playoffs is like. Defense gets stepped up, every possession is of even greater importance.

Teams can surprise, like Atlanta did a year ago, but usually there is a process to success once the calendar changes to April and May.

However, Bickerstaff won’t change his approach and neither should the players. They should expect to win. That’s half the battle.

Hard To Argue With Addition Of LeVert

The Cleveland Cavaliers GM Koby Altman continued his controlled aggressiveness Sunday when he acquired Caris LeVert from the Indiana Pacers for Ricky Rubio’s expiring contract, and first and second round picks in this year’s draft.

The first round pick is the Cavs, which will hopefully be in the 20’s, and the second round pick is Houston’s which will likely be in the high 30’s.

LeVert can score and the wine and gold need some added offense. Over the past three seasons, the 6’6″ wing has put up at least 18.7 points per game. He’s not a great three point shooter, making 33% for his career, but he’s averaged at least 4.4 assists per contest in the same span.

He gives Cleveland another bigger wing, and someone else who can handle the ball for J.B. Bickerstaff.

And the best thing about the deal is Altman didn’t give up anyone who has been contributing to the surprising success of this team all season.

The lack of depth has been noticeable over the last week with Darius Garland out. We have said the Cavaliers have eight guys who can “play”: Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, Garland, Kevin Love, Cedi Osman, Isaac Okoro, the currently injured Lauri Markkanen, and we recently added Lamar Stevens to that list.

When two of them are missing, like what has happened with Garland and Markkanen out, they need two of the players not listed here to step up.

Sunday, Rajon Rondo dialed back the clock. A little over a week ago, Brandon Goodwin played very well in a comeback win over New Orleans.

LeVert should give the coaching staff another player they can depend on.

We say should because one of the great components of this year’s team is the chemistry, the togetherness of the group.

LeVert can be a little ball dominant at times, but also has good assist numbers. While the Cavs certainly need someone else who can create a shot when all else fails, he still needs to fit in other areas.

For example, this team is built on defense and grit. Can LeVert provide that?

This is where the veteran leadership of Love and Rondo come in. They will help in delivering Bickerstaff’s message to the newcomer. They have both bought in, and with Rondo just coming over in the last six weeks, he has already realized this group has a special culture.

By all reports, LeVert is and has been a great teammate. Pacers’ coach Rick Carlisle, who has been around for awhile, spoke glowingly about him. And Jarrett Allen already played with him in Brooklyn last season.

We would anticipate LeVert going into the starting lineup when he gets acclimated replacing Okoro, and that’s because the starting group needs someone besides Garland who can shoot. The bench bunch has Love and Osman who can put the ball in the basket.

And we are sure if the Cavs have the lead in the fourth quarter, Okoro will be out there because he can defend, and again, that’s what this team hangs its hat on.

As for giving up the draft picks? Yes, Altman might find a contributor that late in the first round, but this team is so young, there really isn’t a need to obtain more youth. They are better off getting playoff experience and seeing just how far they can go with this squad.

This was a good move by Altman, and he still has time to add another piece to strengthen the Cavs. We will find that out by Thursday.