The Cavaliers now know the path they’ll have to navigate in the 2026 NBA Cup, and it starts at home.
Cleveland opens group play on November 6 at 7:00 PM ET against the 76ers. The headline attached to that one is Dean Wade’s first trip back to Cleveland as a visitor after seven seasons, which gives the opener a little extra juice. The teams will have already met two weeks earlier in Philadelphia, and that game figures to draw plenty of attention as well because LeBron James is set to come to town after spurning the team in his free agency decision over the summer.
The Cavs will have their stars lined up for that night in Cleveland, with Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, Donovan Mitchell, and the rest of the group looking to protect home court.
Their second matchup comes on November 13 against the Heat, with an 8:00 PM ET tip. Miami looks different after a summer that brought in Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is expected to team with Bam Adebayo to form a dangerous All-Star pairing up front.
The Heat also lost several important players through the deal and free agency, so this is a much changed roster. For Cleveland, Mitchell will be a key piece in a road game that should turn into a heavyweight battle in the paint.
The third game on the schedule sends the Cavs back home for a 7:30 PM ET meeting with the Pacers. Indiana’s last game against Cleveland was a statement one, as Tyrese Haliburton and company eliminated the Cavs in five games.
That came after Cleveland finished as the top seed and came off a 60+ win season, making the result sting even more. Indiana is now healthy again and has added new pieces, so the Cavs will need to lean on defense if they want to slow a team trying to push back into championship contention.
Cleveland closes group play with a 7:30 PM ET showdown at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks have given the Cavs plenty of trouble on the biggest stages, including Christmas Day when Cleveland saw a huge lead disappear in a loss. The same kind of comeback happened in Game 1 of the ECF, and New York has had the upper hand in big moments, from the 2023 first-round drubbing to last season’s struggles.
East Group B shapes up as a tough draw, and Cleveland’s final group game should say plenty about where this team stands.
In Other News...
Cavs May Sacrifice Rotation Pieces To Land Their Long Pursued Wing
The Cavaliers have been circling Peyton Watson for weeks, and the interest has now reached the point where familiar rotation pieces may be part of the cost. Cleveland is trying to open up the kind of financial flexibility needed to chase the Denver wing, with Dennis Schroder and Max Strus both mentioned as possible trade chips while the front office works through the mechanics of a move that would have to include sign-and-trade cooperation from the Nuggets.
Watson remains the type of long-term wing Cleveland has been hunting, but the deal is complicated by his desire for a multi-year contract with a steep annual price tag. That makes this more than a simple talent pursuit for the Cavs, because landing him likely means reshaping the roster and finding a partner in Denver willing to help push the transaction across the finish line. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Face One Huge Trade Question As East Pressure Builds
With pressure building in the East, Clevelands front office is at least being measured against the kind of swing-big trade proposal that can remake a roster overnight. A hypothetical three-team framework making the rounds would drag the Cavaliers into a wider shuffle with Houston and Detroit, and it has enough star power attached to it to make the discussion feel less like pure fantasy and more like the sort of idea contenders are always forced to weigh.
The appeal is obvious: Cleveland would be adding proven perimeter help and another elite offensive option, while also trying to balance the cost against what it already has in place. But a deal this layered comes with the usual complications, from the sheer number of moving parts to the question of whether each side would truly be willing to part with what it has to give up, which is why this remains more a fascinating thought exercise than a clean path forward. [Read more 🡒]
Meleek Thomas Is Suddenly In The Middle Of A Cavs Roster Question
Meleek Thomas has already made himself part of the conversation in Cleveland after the Cavaliers took him with the 34th pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. A strong showing in Vegas Summer League only added to the buzz, and the rookies All-Summer League First Team nod suggested he did more than just hold his own against summer competition.
Now the question is what comes next for Thomas in a backcourt that still has some sorting out to do. He looks like the kind of guard who could carve out a real early role, but his path to steady minutes will depend on how the Cavs roster settles around him. If things break the right way, he could be in line for a meaningful reserve job right away. [Read more 🡒]