As the 2024-25 NBA season quickly approaches, we explore two season-defining questions and one bold prediction for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are coming off a run to the Eastern Conference Semifinals a year ago. However, after a somewhat inactive offseason, this is a team that has plenty of questions and uncertainties heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.
As we preview the new campaign for the Cavs, we explore some of those questions and offer one bold prediction.
Will the backcourt look better this season?
During the regular season, the two-man lineup of Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell wasn't bad at all. However, they did struggle when they were both on the court during the playoffs. And in fact, there is evidence that they were staggered quite a bit on the court during the regular season. We don't know exactly how new head coach Kenny Atkinson is going to handle their minutes this year, but there has to be an improvement from this duo.
If the Cavs are going to take a step forward this season, it has to begin with Garland and Mitchell. They have the talent to be the best backcourt in the Eastern Conference. Through their first two seasons together, they've been far from that. So much so that there were whispers of a potential trade of Garland.
The fact that Garland wasn't traded suggests the team has faith in this backcourt. The question is, can they figure out their dynamic quickly enough this season to not bring about some of those same whispers leading up to the NBA Trade Deadline?