The Cleveland Cavaliers are set to open their 2022-23 NBA campaign Wednesday night on the road against the Toronto Raptors, with their starting unit featuring veteran Caris LeVert, who has done enough to win a spot on the team’s first-five unit, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
“Sources tell cleveland.com that LeVert will be the team’s fifth starter for Wednesday’s opener against the Toronto Raptors — and the foreseeable future. LeVert will join Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen in the starting group, creating an explosive quintet with five scoring threats.”
Caris LeVert made an immediate impact on the Cavs after he was traded there back in February. While he appeared in only 19 games last season for Cleveland, he was able to muster averages of 13.6 points, 3.9 assists, and 3.4 rebounds. He is an excellent secondary option on offense and should make life easier on offense for the likes of Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell. While Caris LeVert isn’t much of an outside shooter, who sank just 32.0 percent of his 3-pointers in the 2021-22 NBA season, he is a capable playmaker who can make shots on his own, get to the lane, and create scoring opportunities for his teammates.
It also appears that Cavs head coach JB Bickerstaff only finalized the team’s starting unit less than a week before the Toronto game.
“But sources say Bickerstaff made his decision over the weekend and spent a couple days digging deeper into the numbers while also having back-and-forth dialogue with his assistants before telling the players.”
Caris LeVert and the Cavs will play another road game in Chicago on Saturday before they make their home opener Sunday against the Washington Wizards.