The Cleveland Cavaliers’ season is over after getting swept in the Eastern Conference Finals. At the NBA trade deadline, Cleveland prioritized acquiring experienced veterans to make a deep playoff run. James Harden was the first acquisition, and after an up-and-down regular season, he once again fell short of winning an NBA title. For the rest of the team, you saw inconsistent playoff performances from Round 1 to the Eastern Conference Finals. So what’s next for a team with big decisions to make this summer regarding key free agents and a salary cap well into the second apron?
The Cavaliers come into the offseason with plenty of questions. What does a Harden extension look like? Should they pursue Giannis Antetokounmpo? Will LeBron James come home for one more season? All these are legit questions the Cavaliers will have to figure out. The good news is Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen are under contract. If they choose to key this core together, they will have to rebuild the bench, with the majority of them becoming unrestricted free agents. Role players such as Max Strus, Jaylon Tyson, and Dennis Schroder are also under contract. Harden goes into the summer with a $42.3M player option; they can also extend him, which many insiders and analysts are predicting they will do.
Shortly after the playoff loss, the Cavaliers announced that head coach Kenny Atkinson will be back with the team next season. This comes as a surprise for many, given how the recent series went and the comments he made throughout the series. Atkinson was the 2024-2025 coach of the year and has led the team to a 116-48 record in the regular season. His struggles come in the postseason with a 13-14 record. Many of the players backed Atkinson after the loss and praised his coaching and leadership throughout the season.
A successful season in many different aspects, but once again fell short against an opposing team that prides themselves with physicality. A Cavaliers roster that could look a lot different next season has many difficult decisions to make.
Harden’s extension is presumably done, and a major reason he was traded to Cleveland in the first place. That raises the question of what Mitchell’s future is. Next season, Mitchell will be on the books for $50 million, and the following season has a player option that he will either opt into or out of. This makes this offseason important for what the long-term commitment looks like. The team can either play out this contract, listen to offers, or extend Mitchell long-term. All of these will have to be answered this summer while in the second apron.
The Cavaliers’ two big men had solid playoff runs, but what more can they provide? Mobley is under contract until 2030 with an average salary of $53 million. Allen has a new extension kick-in that keeps him under contract until 2029. This front court is not cheap, but they play a big role in how the Cavaliers operate on both ends of the floor. Rumors have floated around that the Cavaliers may be interested in acquiring Antetokounmpo, but would have to give away the majority of their assets to obtain him.
What does Free Agency look like for this Cavaliers team? The bulk of their signings should be rebuilding the bench. Players such as Ellis, Nance Jr, Wade, and Bryant are all unrestricted free agents, giving them some flexibility in terms of cap space. Craig Porter Jr has a club option, leaving it up to the team to pick it up or not.
This roster could use some depth that combines experience and physicality. Similar to what Schroder brought to the team, is what they need more of in the second unit. The wing position is an area that the roster could improve, with Strus and Tyson being the only players under contract. Players like Kelly Oubre Jr, Rui Hachimura, and Harrison Barnes are all veterans who bring many intangibles to a roster. They could also entertain the trade market and listen to offers on essentially everyone on the roster. Nobody knows how much the Cavaliers want to change after this season. Whether it’s trading a member of the core or a reserve player, this organization still wants and believes it can win now.
In the 2026 NBA Draft, the Cavaliers will pick at #29. This selection, for the most part, won’t have a major effect on their free agency game plan, but it could be nice to get a young developmental player for the future. In the most recent Drafts, the Cavaliers have made nice selections with Tyson and Proctor. Both young players have seen the floor while sitting back and learning from the veterans.
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The leader of this team for the past four seasons has been Donovan Mitchell. In his tenure, the team has gone 215-113 in the regular season, 19-25 in the playoffs, and has just one Eastern Conference Finals Appearance. Averaging just shy of 28 PPG this season shows how dominant Mitchell can be. In the playoffs, he is still a star, just inconsistent at times. What hurt the Cavaliers in this postseason was the play from Harden. In the series versus the Knicks, he shot 5/28 from 3PT with more turnovers than assists. With an extension looming for Harden, it raises the question of whether this backcourt can work long-term.
Harden has only been a member of this team since February, which gives the Cavaliers optimism that he can figure out the next few seasons. We saw impressive performances from role players, Max Strus and Sam Merrill, giving the Cavaliers legitimate offensive options heading into next season. Mentioned previously, this franchise has made long-term commitments to the bigs, showing how much they value the tandem.
What it’s looking like is another season where the Cavaliers run it back and hope for different results. Reaching the Eastern Conference Finals is something to be proud of, but the collapse during Game 1 to the eventual sweep has opened fans’ eyes to what this roster’s ceiling truly is.
Along with the players, coach Atkinson will have to be better and find ways to win other than through analytical formulas. The top end of this roster can compete with anybody in the league, and they show it in the regular season, but once it’s playoff time, you see a different mentality. That is the biggest question this offseason: how can a roster this talented change its approach heading into the postseason, and what will their physicality look like when opposing teams know their track record? A big step reaching the Conference Finals, but what will this roster ultimately look like in the 2026-2027 season?
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