Can the Cavaliers Save Their Season at the Trade Deadline?

On the Cavaliers' season, the difficulty in upgrading their roster, and why the trade deadline may be more about setting the stage for next season than saving this year.

The Cleveland Cavaliers entered the season with championship aspirations. They constructed a deep roster that set them with the league’s highest payroll. The game plan was simple: spend whatever it takes, both this season and the next, to compete for an NBA championship.

In what is one of the most surprising results for the 2025-26 season, the Cavaliers are off to a disappointing 17-16 start to the season. Instead of pushing for a top seed, they currently find themselves in the Play-In territory among other “red” teams. It goes without saying that their $392 million roster expenses are not justified.

Compounding their bad season is that they don’t have control of their 2026 first-round draft pick. They traded swapping rights on it last year as part of their acquisition of DeAndre Hunter from the Hawks, who hedged it against the swap they owe to the Spurs. As a result, the Cavs are currently projected to receive the 28th pick from the Spurs instead of their own, currently slotted at 16th.

The next three weeks will be critical for the Cavaliers, who have no incentive to bottom out even if they wanted to. They should be better now that they’ve nearly regained full health. Max Strus and Larry Nance Jr. are their only absences left. But after a demoralizing loss to the Rockets, which prompted head coach Kenny Atkinson to call out the team’s lack of preparedness, one might wonder if they haven’t spiritually recovered from their early 2025 playoff exit to the Pacers.

Even if they improve, they’re clearly not a top-tier championship contender. They’ll need to go on a massive run in January, or face big changes. No, nothing involving their All-Star trio. Fundamental changes like that would likely come next offseason. But they could be motivated to seek tougher and more physical players to improve their title hopes while also significantly reducing their payroll ahead of the February 5 trade deadline.