How the Cleveland Cavaliers Can Fill Their Remaining Roster Spots

The Cavs must pivot their offseason plans after LeBron James announced he will be joining the Philadelphia 76ers for the 2026/27 season. Here is what Koby Altman should be doing.

May 11, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson reacts against the Detroit Pistons during the second half of game four in the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The reality of the LeBron James situation is the longer he waited, the less likely it became he was returning home.

Now that reality has set in, let’s look forward to what Kenny Atkinson's Cavs must do to stay competitive in an increasingly difficult Eastern Conference.

James Harden

The Cavs have four open roster spots, one of which is expected to go to James Harden. James Harden’s situation in Cleveland is extremely uncertain. 

With LeBron going to Philadelphia, Harden’s contract situation is starting to look less like strategic planning and more like intense negotiating. If the Cavaliers have no plans to make major changes to the roster, Harden's situation should have been resolved shortly after he declined his player option.

Another roster spot that will be filled on July 30th is Summer League star Meleek Thomas. Since the Cavs signed Thomas to a second-round pick exception, his $1.4 million cap number doesn’t become official until the 30th.

This extra space should play a role in the Cavs offseason regardless of how Harden’s contract is resolved. Should Altman fail to use this space by delaying re-signing Harden, he can still utilize the flexibility by generating a slightly bigger portion of his taxpayer mid-level exception if the plan is still to retain Harden.

Two open roster spots

Should the Cavs retain Harden, with Meleek Thomas’ contract becoming official on the 30th, the Cavaliers would still have two roster spots that must be filled. Depending on how much the Cavs retain Harden for, they will either be near or over the first apron.

The Cavs would have to decide at this point whether it is more beneficial to fill the last two roster spaces and go/stay over the first apron, or make a trade to clear the space necessary to stay under the first apron.

Going over the first apron

If the Cavaliers go over the first apron, they would be able to use a portion of the taxpayer mid-level exception(about $6.1 million annually) and they would only be able to use it on a player willing to sign, or already signed(if acquired via trade) to a one or two year deal.

The final roster spot would likely have to sign a minimum contract.

Staying under the first apron

If the Cavaliers stay under the first apron, either by trading for cap relief or signing Harden to a smaller deal, they would be able to use a portion of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception(about $15 million annually) to sign or trade for any player on a deal up to 4 years in length. 

The only catch is the Cavaliers would be hard capped at the first apron and would be unable to go over it for this season. 

If they can make the money work, the last roster spot would be able to sign for the bi-annual exception of about $5.5 million so long as it doesn’t push the Cavs over the hard capped first apron. Ideally however, the last roster spot would sign a minimum so the Cavs could retain the nearly $6 million bi-annual to make any trade deadline adjustments.