The Cleveland Cavaliers are a mess right now, as all the good vibes they built from their 64-win team last season appear to be all but gone. The Cavs are coming off a brutal 127-111 loss to the flatlining Chicago Bulls — an inexcusable defeat even though they’re missing the services of Evan Mobley.
At this point, the Cavs appear to be stagnating, and their core four hasn’t netted much in the form of success. Being unable to make a deep playoff run is one thing, but the Cavs have always been solid in the regular season. However, even that baseline level of success is getting away from them.
Nonetheless, even though there is mounting pressure on the Cavs, they are not even on the verge of panicking. As per ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel, Cleveland is not going to be holding a fire sale just yet — but could potentially do so during the 2026 offseason if the 2025-26 campaign doesn’t pan out according to plan.
“There’s no indication that they’re going to blow things up at the trade deadline,” Siegel said on the Clutch Scoops show. “Looking ahead, I think that the question for this team is not what moves they’ll make before the trade deadline necessarily, but what this is gonna look like in the offseason.”
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How long can the Cavs remain patient?
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Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell (45) reacts
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This Cavs team is under the microscope, as they continue to underperform year after year. Many thought that Cleveland would be primed for a bounce-back season, what with the team using their embarrassing second-round exit last season as motivation. But instead, they’ve become a near-.500 team that’s heavily reliant on Donovan Mitchell’s scoring amid the team’s injury woes.
The Cavs have to lock in from here on out, but they might find that difficult considering that Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen are not yet up to full speed.