A few days ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers were in full-on panic mode. All of their contemporaries in the Eastern Conference had made moves to re-shape/improve their roster. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers were striking out left and right.
The team was in serious danger of slipping out of contention, despite having an expensive team that was supposed to be ready to win now. But that all changed on Wednesday, as the Cavaliers orchestrated a blockbuster five-team deal that netted them Peyton Watson -- the best available unsigned player at this point in the offseason (sorry, Jalen Duren).
But how much better does this trade actually make the Cavaliers?
Where do the Cleveland Cavaliers rank in the Eastern Conference?
The Eastern Conference projects to be really tough this season. However, it is also kind of hard to sort out as, even the ones that sit at the top, carry some question marks. How much does losing Mitchell Robinson hurt the New York Knicks? Are Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum fully healthy and ready to carry their respective teams to another deep playoff run? Can the Philadelphia 76ers rewrite the narrative surrounding superteams? The list goes on and on.
So, let's start to parse out this mess by establishing the teams that are definitely worse than the Cavaliers. Those teams would be the Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic, and Charlotte Hornets. That eliminates seven of the other 14 teams.
I'd also say that they are better than the Detroit Pistons. They just beat the Pistons in a seven game series, and I haven't really liked any of the moves that Detroit made this offseason (outside of drafting Ebuka Okorie with the 17th overall pick).
I'll say the same thing about the 76ers. I'm not super keen on their "Superteam," as they lack depth and a roster that fits cohesively -- at least on paper. I think the Cavaliers' roster fits together a little better (although I am skeptical of their spacing and physicality), is deeper, and more durable.
This leaves us with five other teams. The Miami Heat, Indiana Pacers, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, and Toronto Raptors.
The Heat made their own landscape-altering move a few months back (trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo) -- giving them a formidable twin tower configuration. However, the Cavaliers also have their own pair of titans, and they have far superior guard play. Advantage Cleveland.
To me, the Raptors have the best blend of talent, depth, and fit. Even if they don't win the most regular season games, I view them as the best team in the East. The Knicks are the defending champions and just dismantled the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals, so I'll also put them ahead here.
I'm going to cop out and say that I view the Cavaliers, Celtics, and Pacers as being in the same tier. Both teams have given the Cavaliers problems in the past. But both of them also have some serious injury questions with Haliburton, Tatum, and Paul George. Also, the Celtics just traded away Jaylen Brown (the team's second-best player) and the Pacers lost Myles Turner last offseason (an integral piece to the starting lineup that carried them all the way to the NBA Finals in 2024).
The Cavaliers may not be the best team in the East, but this trade definetly keeps them in the upper echeleon -- meaning they certiantly have a chance of coming out of that side of the bracket. And given how wide open the East is this year, a chance is all they need.
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