CLEVELAND — Coming off a breakthrough season in which they amassed a 44-38 record, earning a spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament, expectations were already high for the Cleveland Cavaliers entering the 2022-23 campaign.
And that was before they traded for three-time All-Star Donovan Mitchell, who has helped catapult the Cavs from being a "nice young team" to a potential Eastern Conference contender.
In coming to Cleveland, Mitchell joins All-Stars Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen and unanimous first-team All-Rookie selection Evan Mobley to give the Cavs one of the most formidable young cores in the entire NBA. For the first time in a long time, Cleveland enters a season with expectations unrelated to LeBron James as the Cavs look to make the NBA Playoffs for the first time since his departure in 2018.
That journey will begin on Wednesday night, when Cleveland opens its season on the road at the Toronto Raptors. What follows is everything you need to know about the Cavs' upcoming 2022-23 campaign.
2022-23 Cleveland Cavaliers' Coaching Staff
- Head coach: JB Bickerstaff
- Associate head coach: Greg Buckner
- Assistant coach: Sidney Lowe
- Assistant coach: Luke Walton
- Assistant coach: Antonio Lang
- Assistant coach: JJ Outlaw
- Trainer: Stephen Spiro
Cleveland Cavaliers' 2022-23 Coaching Staff Analysis:
After taking over for John Beilein midway through the 2019-20 season, JB Bickerstaff enters his third full season as Cleveland's head coach. Last season, the 43-year-old Bickerstaff looked like an early frontrunner for NBA Coach of the Year, before injuries hampered the Cavs' playoff hopes and resulted in Cleveland being eliminated by the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks in the Play-In Tournament.
Bickerstaff largely returns the same coaching staff he had a season ago, with the lone exception being the addition of former Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton. The former Cavs forward will replace assistant coach Mike Gerrity, who is now serving as the head coach of the franchise's G-League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge.
Cleveland Cavaliers 2022-23 lineup
- Point guard: Darius Garland
- Shooting guard: Donovan Mitchell / Isaac Okoro
- Small forward: Caris LeVert / Dean Wade / Cedi Osman
- Power forward: Evan Mobley / Kevin Love
- Center: Jarrett Allen / Robin Lopez
The early indications appear to be that the Cavs will open the season with a 10-man rotation with Caris LeVert likely to fill the void left by Lauri Markkanen at small forward. Bickerstaff has already said he plans to stagger Garland and Mitchell's minutes, with the latter not only starting at shooting guard, but also playing backup point guard as Ricky Rubio continues to recover from his torn ACL.
Similarly, look for Mobley to help spell Allen at center, with Sixth Man of the Year runner-up Kevin Love possessing the ability to play with either. Dean Wade also provides the Cavs with the flexibility to employ bigger lineups, like the ones Cleveland found success with throughout most of last season.
Cleveland Cavaliers' 2022-23 Schedule:
- 10/19/22 @ Toronto Raptors, 7:30 PM ET
- 10/22/22 @ Chicago Bulls, 8:00 PM ET
- 10/23/22 vs. Washington Wizards, 7:00 PM ET
- 10/26/22 vs. Orlando Magic 7:00 PM ET
- 10/28/22 @ Boston Celtics, 7:30 PM ET
- 10/30/22 vs. New York Knicks, 6:00 PM ET
- 11/2/22 vs. Boston Celtics, 7:30 PM ET
- 11/4/22 @ Detroit Pistons, 7:00 PM ET
- 11/6/22 @ Los Angeles Lakers, 3:30 PM ET
- 11/7/22 @ LA Clippers, 10:30 PM ET
- 11/9/22 @ Sacramento Kings, 10:00 PM ET
- 11/11/22 @ Golde State Warriors, 10:00 PM ET
- 11/13/22 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves, 6:00 PM ET
- 11/16/22 @ Milwaukee Bucks, 8:00 PM ET
- 11/18/22 vs. Charlotte Hornets, 7:30 PM ET
- 11/20/22 vs. Miami Heat, 7:00 PM ET
- 11/21/22 vs. Atlanta Hawks, 7:00 PM ET
- 11/23/22 vs. Portland Trail Blazers, 7:00 PM ET
- 11/25/22 @ Milwaukee Bucks, 8:00 PM ET
- 11/27/22 @ Detroit Pistons, 6:00 PM ET
- 11/28/22 @ Toronto Raptors, 7:30 PM ET
- 11/30/22 vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 7:00 PM ET
- 12/2/22 vs. Orlando Magic, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/4/22 @ New York Knicks, 6:00 PM ET
- 12/6/22 vs. Los Angeles Lakers, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/9/22 vs. Sacramento Kings, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/10/22 vs Oklahoma City Thunder, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/12/22 @ San Antonio Spurs, 8:30 PM ET
- 12/14/22 @ Dallas Mavericks, 9:00 PM ET
- 12/16/22 vs. Indiana Pacers, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/17/22 vs. Dallas Mavericks, 8:00 PM ET
- 12/19/22 vs. Utah Jazz 7:00 PM ET
- 12/21/22 vs. Milwaukee Bucks, 7:00 PM ET
- 12/23/22 vs. Toronto Raptors, 7:30 PM ET
- 12/26/22 vs. Brooklyn Nets, 7:00 PM ET
- 12/29/22 @ Indiana Pacers, 7:00 PM ET
- 12/31/22 @ Chicago Bulls, 7:00 PM ET
- 1/2/23 vs. Chicago Bulls, 7:00 PM ET
- 1/4/23 vs. Phoenix Suns, 7:00 PM ET
- 1/6/23 @ Denver Nuggets, 9:00 PM ET
- 1/8/23 @ Phoenix Suns, 8:00 PM ET
- 1/1o/23 @ Utah Jazz, 9:00 PM ET
- 1/12/23 @ Portland Trail Blazers, 10:00 PM ET
- 1/14/23 @ Minnesota Timberwolves, 8:00 PM ET
- 1/16/23 vs. New Orleans Pelicans, 3:00 PM ET
- 1/18/23 @ Memphis Grizzlies, 8:00 PM ET
- 1/20/23 vs. Golden State Warriors, 7:30 PM ET
- 1/21/23 vs. Milwaukee Bucks, 7:30 PM ET
- 1/24/23 @ New York Knicks, 7:30 PM ET
- 1/26/23 @ Houston Rockets, 8:00 PM ET
- 1/27/23 @ Oklahoma City Thunder, 8:00 PM ET
- 1/29/23 vs. LA Clippers, 7:00 PM ET
- 1/31/22 vs. Miami Heat, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/2/23 vs. Memphis Grizzlies, 7:30 PM ET
- 2/5/23 @ Indiana Pacers, 5:00 PM ET
- 2/6/23 @ Washington Wizards, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/8/23 vs. Detroit Pistons, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/10/23 @ New Orleans Pelicans, 10:00 PM ET
- 2/11/23 vs. Chicago Bulls, 8:00 PM ET
- 2/13/23 vs. San Antonio Spurs, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/15/23 @ Philadelphia 76ers, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/23/23 vs. Denver Nuggets, 7:00 PM ET
- 2/24/23 @ Atlanta Hawks 7:30 PM ET
- 2/26/23 vs. Toronto Raptors, 6:00 PM ET
- 3/1/23 @ Boston Celtics, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/4/23 vs. Detroit Pistons, 8:00 PM ET
- 3/6/23 vs. Boston Celtics, 7:00 PM ET
- 3/8/23 @ Miami Heat, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/10/23 @ Miami Heat, 8:00 PM ET
- 3/12/23 @ Charlotte Hornets, 5:00 PM ET
- 3/14/23 @ Charlotte Hornets 7:00 PM ET
- 3/15/23 vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/17/23 vs. Washington Wizards, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/21/23 @ Brooklyn Nets, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/23/23 @ Brooklyn Nets, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/26/23 vs. Houston Rockets, 6:00 PM ET
- 3/28/23 @ Atlanta Hawks, 7:30 PM ET
- 3/31/23 vs. New York Knicks, 7:30 PM ET
- 4/2/23 vs. Indiana Pacers, 8:00 PM ET
- 4/4/23 @ Orlando Magic, 7:00 PM ET
- 4/6/23 @ Orlando Magic, 7:00 PM ET
- 4/9/23 vs. Charlotte Hornets, 1:00 PM ET
Cleveland Cavaliers' 2022-23 betting odds
Here's where the Cavs' betting odds stand heading into the 2022-23 season, via VegasInsider.
NBA Finals champions
- Boston Celtics +593
- Golden State Warriors +618
- Milwaukee Bucks +650
- Los Angeles Clippers +662
- Brooklyn Nets +775
- Phoenix Suns +1175
- Philadelphia 76ers +1300
- Denver Nuggets +1800
- Miami Heat +1900
- Los Angeles Lakers +2025
- Memphis Grizzlies +2150
- Dallas Mavericks +2600
- Minnesota Timberwolves +3100
- Cleveland Cavaliers +3150
- New Orleans Pelicans +4050
- Toronto Raptors +4150
- Atlanta Hawks +5000
- Chicago Bulls +5900
- New York Knicks +9650
- Portland Trail Blazer +13375
- Charlotte Hornets +19750
- Washington Wizards +25250
- Sacramento Kings +46000
- Detroit Pistons +47500
- Orlando Magic +50000
- Houston Rockets +62500
- Indiana Pacers +75000
- Utah Jazz +75000
- Oklahoma City Thunder +75000
- San Antonio Spurs +75000
2023 Eastern Conference champions
- Milwaukee Bucks +325
- Boston Celtics +333
- Brooklyn Nets +350
- Philadelphia 76ers +650
- Miami Heat +750
- Cleveland Cavaliers +1400
- Toronto Raptors +1400
- Atlanta Hawks +2000
- Chicago Bulls +2500
- New York Knicks +2800
- Charlotte Hornets +6000
- Washington Wizards +6000
- Indiana Pacers +15000
- Detroit Pistons +20000
- Orlando Magic +20000
2023 Central Division champions
- Milwaukee Bucks -275
- Cleveland Cavaliers +340
- Chicago Bulls +650
- Detroit Pistons +15000
- Indiana Pacers +20000