I have seen two of the four Devils games and watched the Cavaliers close their opening night defeat to Toronto.
Of late, due to various work-related issues, I haven't been as quick on time-sensitive posts and I hope to improve on that once these issues subside.
Cleveland thinks they have made a major improvement in obtaining three-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell to fit in their backcourt. While the chemistry mix is still to be determined, I did like what I saw for the short time that Mitchell and Darius Garland played on the floor together against Toronto.
I wrote a short time as Garland was poked in the eye by Toronto's Gary Trent Jr. in the second quarter and suffered a lacerated eyelid on the inside of the eye that ended Garland's evening early.
Garland will not need surgery but he could miss this weekend's games at Chicago and the home opener against Washington.
Garland has taken jumps in performance in each of the last two seasons, so should he make even a small improvement, Garland could rank with the elite point guards in the league.
Mitchell can play the point or on the wing, so there is some versatility with Mitchell although the team hopes that Mitchell and Garland can play together which was always a struggle with Garland and Collin Sexton.
I'm not sure the franchise has ever had two guards of this type of talent at the same time in their history, so this is a really big deal.
Ricky Rubio was signed to return to Cleveland after an excellent half-season before a knee injury that will keep him out until January and journeyman Raul Neto will try to stem the tide as Garland's backup until Rubio returns.
Caris LeVert nosed out Isaac Okoro and Cedi Osman as the starter at small forward but both will see time at the two and three.
LeVert struggled a bit after his arrival from Indiana but could thrive in a role as a secondary option in this offense.
LeVert's contract expires at the end of the season, so it is possible that under some scenarios he could be attractive to another team as an expiring contract at the trade deadline.
Isaac Okoro has been erratic in his first two seasons and what eventual value he has to a winning team is yet to be determined.
If Okoro can improve his shot, which he has been reported to be very dedicated to working on, he could be a solid starter for a good team but at the current state of his career, Okoro could be a second-unit player.
Cedi Osman will see plenty of time with the second team at both spots after a 2021-22 season that saw him revitalize his career as a high-energy role player.
Oft-injured Dylan Windler is, a big surprise, injured but could also see time at guard and forward as well.
Evan Mobley barely missed the rookie of the year award last season and will be back with a vengeance to prove the voters were wrong in giving the award to Toronto's Scottie Barnes.
Mobley can play any of the frontcourt positions and is only going to improve as the centerpiece of the Cavaliers in the frontcourt for years to come.
Kevin Love is back after proving last season that there is plenty of juice left in his career as a sixth man to backup Mobley and Jarrett Allen to provide outside shooting and the occasional rebounder.
Love's contract ends at the end of this season, so this is likely his swan song in Cleveland.
Dean Wade and Lamar Stevens will add depth with Wade the better shooter and Stevens the preferred rebounder and defender.
Second-round draftee Isaiah Mobley will be on the end of the bench and should see his share of time in the G-league with the Charge, the Cavalier's entry in that league.
Jarrett Allen made the All-Star team last season and it was his late-season injury that may have been the largest factor in the late-season fade that cost the Cavaliers a top-six finish that would have allowed them to avoid the play-in series.
Cleveland added veteran big man Robin Lopez to give Allen an occasional breather and give the Cavaliers an improved reserve in the pivot in the event of another Allen injury.
I think this Cavaliers team could be a very exciting one and one that could net over fifty wins.
I'm not quite sure that they are ready to be Eastern title contenders but they are easily a top-six threat and maybe with a few breaks could earn as high as a third seed in the playoffs.
I'd be happy with a first-round playoff win as a successful season and I'll pick 51-31 as their final record on the season.
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