CLEVELAND — Rebuild complete?
Well, the ultimate goal might not be completed, but the Cavaliers certainly appear to have succeeded in remaking their roster, achieving a tremendous objective Sunday by clinching their first playoff berth since 2018.
Cleveland earned its postseason spot with a 108-91 victory over lowly Houston, overcoming a late Rockets charge to pull away in the fourth quarter. Jarrett Allen led the way with 24 points and 14 rebounds, and Donovan Mitchell scored 22 along with five boards.
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The Cavs' last official playoff appearance ended with their fourth straight Eastern Conference championship, but after club legend LeBron James left for the Los Angeles Lakers, the arduous rebuild began. Just like after James' first departure in 2010, the early results were horrendous, with a record of just 60-159 over the initial three seasons. The team also went through three head coaches (Tyronn Lue, Larry Drew, and John Beilein) before finally settling on J.B. Bickerstaff in 2020.
Here are some of the celebratory posts shared by the team:
Slowly, young general manager Koby Altman began stockpiling young talent, selecting eventual cornerstones Darius Garland and Evan Mobley early in the draft while also acquiring Allen in a three-team deal that involved James Harden going from Houston to Brooklyn. Following a surprising trip to the play-in tournament a year ago, the ultimate move came this past offseason, when Mitchell arrived from Utah in exchange for multiple pieces including Collin Sexton and Lauri Markkanen.
The big swing produced a home run, with Mitchell being named an All-Star starter and the young core around him continuing to develop. There were plenty of bumps along the way, but as it stands right now, the Cavaliers sit fourth in the East with a record of 48-28.
Houston (18-57) trailed by as many as 20 before storming back to cut the deficit to five early in the fourth. Jalen Green had a game-high 30 points for the Rockets, but Allen scored eight in the final period to put things away, punctuated by a pair of dunks.
Not only is this Cleveland's first playoff trip in five years, but it is also their first without the services of LeBron James since 1998, when Mike Fratello's Cavs lost to the Indiana Pacers in the first round. The starting lineup that year?
- PG Brevin Knight
- SG Wesley Person
- SF Cedric Henderson
- PF Shawn Kemp
- C Zydrunas Ilgauskus
As far as winning a postseason series, the Cavaliers haven't done that without LeBron since making it to the Eastern Conference Finals against Michael Jordan way back in 1992. If the playoffs started today, Cleveland would face the fifth-seeded New York Knicks in the opening round, although as it stands the 3-seed currently held by the Philadelphia 76ers is still up for grabs.
With six games left in the regular season, the Cavs will be in Atlanta Wednesday night before actually hosting the Knicks on Friday. Their magic number to clinch at least the fourth seed is two.
