Biggest Flaw in Cleveland Cavaliers Roster They Can’t Afford To Ignore

It's not a new problem, but it's one that the Cleveland Cavaliers struggle to mend.

May 23, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) huddles around teammates during the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks during game three of the eastern conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It’s haunted the Cleveland Cavaliers for years, and it looks like it’s going to return again this year.

Despite making changes to their roster for the upcoming season, missing the boat on LeBron James will define the Cavs’ offseason leading up to September’s training camp. The potential addition of James that didn’t come to fruition would have answered their prayers, but time moves on, and so will Cleveland.

For at least three seasons now, the Cavaliers have lacked that good-level, versatile forward who can shoot and defend at an elite level basically the "five-out" modern prototype and have relied instead on standard undersized two-way guards and traditional big men.

Last season, Dean Wade filled that gap, with Donovan Mitchell helping in his many roles, but Cleveland has never had a dedicated wing player. It hasn’t helped that, due to the Cavs operating near their restrictive financial thresholds, they lack the tradable draft capital to pursue a solid fix.

The Cavs brought in Mario Hezonja, who, on paper, fills the role perfectly. However, he joins from the EuroLeague, a vastly different style of basketball, and Hezonja hasn’t played in the NBA in six years, so at this moment, he is unproven.

Obtaining current free agent DeMar DeRozan could provide a little gap in the positional hole, but again, works better as a shooting guard.

Cavs still stinging from LeBron fallout

Around the NBA and indeed the wider basketball world, the fallout from James’ move to the Sixers has faded but for Cleveland, it still hurts.

Watching Wade leave in free agency, signing with the Sixers on a four-year, $38.7 million deal, the Cavs easily could have matched the offer for a player who started 38 games at forward the previous season.

But they let him slide, adamant that LeBron was returning home, and they laid all their chips on the table with no backup plan to speak of.

The Cavs still plan to bring back James Harden, who opted out of his deal to give President of Basketball Operations Koby Altman flexibility to pursue LeBron James or explore sign-and-trade opportunities for forwards such as Jonathan Kuminga and Peyton Watson, but that is still on hold, as Cleveland haven’t got out of neutral on any of those options.

And it leaves the Cavs on neutral when it comes to the wing position. They have coped before, but it’s starting to feel that a solid player who is comfortable in that position is the difference between an Eastern Conference elimination and a future NBA championship season.