6 Cavaliers on Thin Ice After Kenny Atkinson's Hiring
By Joe Summers
2. Caris LeVert - SG
Caris LeVert enters the final year of his contract, carrying a cap hit north of $16 million. For a player who averaged only 10.1 points per game while shooting 18.7% from beyond the arc in the postseason, that cost might be too rich for the Cavaliers' blood.
He's currently slated to make the fourth-highest salary of any player on the roster in 2024-25, though he'd become third if the team moves on from Darius Garland. Unfortuantely, his theoretical impact as a spark-plug scorer off the bench hasn't come to fruition in the most significant moments.
LeVert showed significant promise in 2022-23, making 39.2% of his three-point attempts, though he cratered back to 32.5% last season before imploding in the playoffs.
"It's Caris LeVert time" pic.twitter.com/nop7E29mRD
— Tony Pesta (@Tony_Pesta) May 12, 2024
Plays like that one illustrate the limitations LeVert's 'score-first' mentality can place on the Cavaliers' offense. Garland, Donovan Mitchell, and Caris LeVert are all ball-dominant guards, creating an imperfect fit when they're sharing the court.
It's worth noting that LeVert played for Kenny Atkinson in Brooklyn. He averaged north of 18.5 points per contest in consecutive seasons, so perhaps Atkinson can unlock the best version of LeVert.
He'll be one of the more interesting storylines to watch over the next week as Cleveland considers roster upgrades.