The Cleveland Cavaliers are spending like a team that wants no part of a patient rebuild.
This summer alone, they handed James Harden $97 million over the next three seasons, gave Peyton Watson $88 million over four, and locked in Donovan Mitchell on a maximum extension that won’t begin until next year and will pay him $272.7 million over four years. Add that to the long-term deals already on the books for Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, and the number gets dizzy fast: more than $450 million in new money for those three players, with over $220 million already committed to six players in 2029-29, including the starters and Sam Merrill.
That figure is already above the projected luxury tax line of $194 million, and it doesn’t even account for the rest of the roster. Cleveland still has to fill out the team, and it still has to figure out what comes next for younger players who will need new deals, including Jaylon Tyson.
The bigger point is the one hiding underneath all those numbers: the Cavaliers have chosen a path that looks a lot more like Denver’s than Detroit’s.
The Nuggets and Pistons made opposite mistakes
Cleveland’s move to sign Watson away from Denver was made possible by the Nuggets’ own financial squeeze. Denver spent heavily, and once the bill came due, they no longer had the flexibility to keep Watson.
The sequence matters. The Nuggets gave Jamal Murray a max deal when they had room to push for less.
They also committed big money to Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. Trading Porter Jr. for Cam Johnson helped a little, but only enough to set up another expensive decision: a five-year, $125 million deal for Christian Braun that already looks rough.
Denver then tried, and failed, to move Braun in order to keep Watson, who is the better player.
That is what life looks like when a team climbs over the second tax apron: basketball decisions start getting made for financial reasons. Cleveland, meanwhile, is staring at the same kind of future.
Denver did get one thing very right. All that spending helped fuel the 2023 title run built around Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. The problem has been keeping that contender together once the price tag became impossible to ignore.
Detroit is taking the opposite approach, and it may keep the Pistons from ever getting to that point.
In Detroit, the unresolved restricted free-agent situation centers on All-NBA center Jalen Duren, who is still waiting on a new contract. Denver would have paid him the max and moved on. The Pistons are trying to grind him down into a bargain.
They’ve taken the same approach with other pieces around the roster. Tobias Harris is gone, and John Collins arrived on a short-term deal that can be ended after one year.
Kevin Huerter came back on a contract that ends with a team option. Isaiah Joe was added on a deal that can also be cut loose as soon as next summer.
With Duren and Ausar Thompson both moving toward new contracts, the Pistons have chosen to slow things down and squeeze their own free agents so they don’t wind up trapped financially later. The tradeoff is obvious: they may be protecting the future, but they are also holding back the present.
Cleveland, by contrast, is spending now and worrying later.
That is not a criticism of ownership being unwilling to pay. Dan Gilbert has never been shy about opening the checkbook, and the Cavaliers were the league’s most expensive team last season. Cleveland is clearly willing to go into the tax if it thinks the roster is good enough.
But the club is also handing out money without much caution. Mobley got a “Rose Rule” escalator in his contract, then won Defensive Player of the Year and pushed his salary even higher.
Harden will still be making $34 million at age 39. Mitchell’s deal could look ugly by the time it runs out.
So the Cavaliers are betting on quality right now, fit questions and all. The cost of that bet is what comes next. If Jaylon Tyson is due for a raise, Cleveland may not have the room to pay him.
That leaves the same basic dilemma the Nuggets either ignored or answered wrong: is adding Watson and keeping Harden worth losing Tyson?
The Pistons, at least, have already answered that question with a no.
In Other News...
Cavs Pipeline Added A Guard Worth Watching Closely
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For Cleveland, the move is about more than just adding depth. Richmond gives the Charge another guard worth evaluating in a system that has become an important part of the organizations bigger picture, and the deal also brought back a 2027 first-round G-League draft pick. The real question now is how quickly Richmond can carve out a role and turn a fresh opportunity into something that matters for the Cavs long-term guard inventory. [Read more 🡒]
Cavs Broadcast News Leaves One Franchise Voice In Question
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Austin Carrs name, though, was absent from the announcement, leaving one of the most recognizable figures in Cavaliers broadcast history in an uncertain spot. Carr has been a longtime franchise voice, and with no official statement clarifying any change, his role in the new era remains unresolved for now. [Read more 🡒]
Former Cavs Big Man Is Getting One More NBA Chance
The 76ers have brought Tacko Fall back into the NBA mix ahead of the new season, giving the towering center another chance to stick at the highest level. Fall spent the 2021-22 season with the Cavaliers, and since then he has continued his career overseas while waiting for another door to open in the league.
At 7-foot-6, Fall remains one of the most recognizable big men in basketball, with his size and shot-blocking still the traits that keep him in the conversation. Philadelphia is now the latest team willing to take a look, and for a player who has bounced between opportunities, the challenge is the same as ever: turn a fresh signing into a roster spot. [Read more 🡒]