9. Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are one of the other teams in the NBA that elected to sit out the NBA Trade Deadline. It was kind of strange when they did so considering they were one of the more rumored aggressive teams heading into the deadline. Nothing materialized and another move for the team will likely have to wait until the offseason.
However, as long as the trio of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, and Evan Mobley can remain healthy, the Cavs are going to be a dark horse contender in the Eastern Conference. I’m not sure this is a team that will be a favorite heading into the playoffs, but they can’t be counted out in a potential seven-game series. Not with how much talent this team has.
The Brooklyn Nets blowing up their roster should ensure a top 4 seed finish for the Cavs this season. That almost all but guarantees a first-round homecourt advantage for this team. That means at the very least, the Cavs should make it to the second round of the playoffs. Anything more is icing on the cake.