2026-27 NBA Season Preview: Cleveland Cavaliers

The 2026-27 NBA Season is officially around the corner. Today, we’re gonna continue our team preview series and take a look at the reigning Eastern Conference runners-up: the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Last year was an eventful one in Cleveland. On the court, they weren’t as dominant as they were two years ago – when they won 64 games, led the East all season, and looked like a real contender, only to get bounced by the Pacers in the second round.

They took a step back last season, still winning 52 games but looking much more beatable, but that’s when they decided to make it past the second round, winning back-to-back 7-game series, and reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since LeBron James left in 2019. Then they got swept, much like pretty much everyone else who was in the way of that red-hot Knicks team.

The biggest move the Cavs made last season, of course, was the blockbuster move at the deadline, trading 26-year-old Darius Garland and a second-round pick to the Clippers for 36-year-old James Harden. The trade was met with mixed reactions, but it was clear the Cavs were going all in, trying to maximize this championship window they have while Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley are both in their primes.

We won’t know if the trade was worth it until Harden’s time with the Cavs ends, and his interesting playoff history made many fans wonder why the Cavs thought he was the missing piece in the first place. But the way I see it, NBA championship windows are very short, and if they thought Harden gave them a better shot than Garland, you can’t fault them for taking a swing.

This offseason from the Cavs showed that they are committing to their current core, at least for now. They began the offseason by signing Mitchell to a four-year, $273 million max extension. Then, they re-signed Harden out of unrestricted free agency for three years and $97 million. Their biggest addition was Peyton Watson, who they acquired in a five-team trade from the Denver Nuggets.

They also acquired Cam Whitmore from Washington (before waiving him on August 28th), while sending Max Strus to the Clippers, Dennis Schröder to Charlotte, and a first-round pick to Denver. Watson is gonna be expected to be a big peace for Cleveland. Last season in Denver, he averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks while shooting 41 percent from deep.

He is an extremely athletic wing, a very versatile defender and a great player to put next to the backcourt of Harden and Mitchell due to his defensive ability. The Cavs also brought Mario Hezonja back after he spent some time overseas, and they selected Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas with the 34th pick.

Thomas averaged 15.7 points on 41.6% from 3 in his one-and-done season at Arkansas, and he is, in my opinion, one of the most underrated rookies and biggest steals of this year’s draft.

James Harden, G – The 37-year-old Harden will enter his first full season with the Cavs after arriving during the trade deadline last season. While there are many valid criticisms of Harden’s game, you also have to give credit where it’s due – Harden is still a great basketball player.

His longevity is up there with almost anyone in NBA history. At 36, he averaged 20.5 points, 7.7 assists, and 4.8 boards on 47/44/84 splits in 26 games with the Cavs. He is still a very high-impact player, and the Cavs will rely on him for a bunch of scoring and playmaking this season.

Donovan Mitchell, G – Mitchell is the face of this team, and Cleveland confirmed that with the huge max deal they gave him this offseason. He averaged 27.9 points, 5.7 assists, and 4.5 rebounds last season, earning his seventh straight All-Star selection and an All-NBA second-team nod. At 29, Mitchell is in the middle of his prime, and coming off his first-ever conference finals appearance, Cleveland is hoping to build off that behind his leadership.

Peyton Watson, F – Watson will be the player to watch in this starting lineup. We know what he does defensively; he is an insane rim protector at 6’8 and is ridiculously hard to score on from the perimeter as well. The question will be if he continues to develop offensively.

He was a very efficient scorer last year in his age 23 season, which is a good sign, but we know that playing alongside Nikola Jokic naturally generates great looks for everyone else on the court. It will be interesting to see if Watson continues to develop in this new situation.

Evan Mobley, F – Mobley is somehow already entering his sixth NBA season, and some think there’s still another level he could reach offensively. Mobley is a former Defensive Player of the Year, and he is one of, if not the most versatile defender at the PF position in the sport.

The next step for him is becoming a more consistent offensive threat, albeit he averaged 18.2 points on 54.6% from the field last season, which isn’t bad at all as is.

Jarrett Allen, C – Allen is simply one of the better centers in basketball. He is coming off a season averaging 15.4 points and 8.5 rebounds, shooting almost 64% from the field. He is a great lob threat, a good rebounder, and he is the third good rim protector in this lineup. A full season of Harden-Allen pick-and-roll connections will be fun to watch.

Jaylon Tyson, F – Tyson had a massive second-year jump, going from 3.6 PPG his rookie year to 13.2 PPG last year on an insane 44.6% from 3. He started 42 games last year, and there is a chance he finds himself back in the starting lineup this year depending on how Kenny Atkinson feels about Watson.

Sam Merrill, G – Another elite sharpshooting piece coming off the bench for Cleveland. Merrill averaged 12.8 points, hitting 42.1% of his three-point shots last season. He and Tyson are great pieces to plug in different lineups around Harden and Mitchell, providing great spacing and catch-and-shoot threats for the ball-dominant guards.

There are a few ways you could go with this, but I have to go with James Harden here. He is the player who can completely change this team’s ceiling or floor. As mentioned, Harden is now 37, but he looked more than capable of being this team’s second scoring option and main playmaker.

In the playoffs, he was very up and down, averaging 19.2 points during the playoffs but having some bad moments, like going 2 for 8 from the field in the Game 4 loss to the Knicks that ended Cleveland’s season.

The Cavs don’t need him to average 30 like he did in his prime. They just need him to control the offense, create for others, not turn the ball over, and hit open shots (especially in the postseason). If he can do that, Cleveland will have one of the most loaded starting 5s in the league.

I think the Cavs are going to be just a bit overlooked going into this season. With a lot of attention going to East teams that made big moves this offseason like the 76ers, Raptors, and Heat, I don’t think the Cavs are getting enough credit for how sneaky good they could be this year. A big concern for this team will be their depth. Losing Dean Wade, Strus, Schröder, and more will undoubtedly make life tougher for this team when Harden, Mitchell, and Mobley need to take a breather.

I think a fair projection for this team would be a similar regular season outcome to last season, finishing with a 50-32 record and ending somewhere in the top 4 of the loaded East yet again. As for the playoffs, this team is very hard to predict; I could see them losing in the first round or making the ECF again. Only time will tell how well this team does together.

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