Kenny Atkinson isn’t rushing to lock in Cleveland’s first five.
The Cavaliers coach said the starting lineup is still open as training camp approaches, and he made it clear the competition won’t stop with the players who open games. The bigger picture, Atkinson said, is sorting out both who starts and how the rest of the minutes get divided.
“The starting lineup is not set,” said Atkinson. “We have a whole training camp to work through that.”
Atkinson went a step further, saying he can make a case for using 13 players in the rotation. That creates two separate puzzles for the staff: picking the group that begins games and figuring out how to spread the floor afterward.
Cavaliers Nation’s earlier projected depth chart had James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Peyton Watson, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen as the starting group, but Atkinson’s comments make that look more like a placeholder than a firm plan. He didn’t single out any player as having lost a job, and he didn’t point to any one position as the source of the uncertainty.
The wing spot looks especially open.
Watson averaged 14.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game for Denver before he arrived in Cleveland in a five-team trade. The Cavs also have two returning players with starting experience in Jaylon Tyson and Sam Merrill.
Tyson started 42 games and shot 44.6 percent from three last season. Merrill made 38 starts and hit 42.1 percent of his 3-pointers on 7.2 attempts per game.
That gives Cleveland multiple ways to build a lineup around its core. Merrill’s shot-making and volume offer one clear offensive path, while Tyson’s production adds another perimeter option the staff can trust.
But the choice won’t come down to shooting alone. The lineup still has to handle matchups, rebound and survive when opponents take away what it wants to run.
Camp will give Atkinson a real chance to test those combinations on the floor together. Watson said last week that Cleveland’s rim protection would give him “a lot more leeway” defensively, which only adds another layer to the evaluation.
That leaves the Cavaliers with a practical question: which mix lets them pressure the ball without creating problems somewhere else?
However that gets answered, it will shape not just the starters but the units that follow once Atkinson goes to his bench.
The 13-player rotation idea matters on its own, too. It doesn’t mean every one of those players will play every night, but it does underline how crowded the picture is. An NBA game gives teams 240 player-minutes, and if those were split evenly among 13 players, each would get about 18.5 minutes.
Of course, minutes are rarely that neat. Once a few players take on bigger workloads, the rest of the pie gets smaller fast. That means the players outside the first five will need to show what they bring to a specific group - another ball-handler here, more shooting there, or an extra frontcourt piece when the matchup calls for it.
Cleveland’s 21-player camp roster and itinerary now set the stage for those decisions. Practices in Spain begin Sept. 30, and the Cavs have a scrimmage scheduled in Malaga on Oct. 4.
What Atkinson chooses to repeat in camp, and what carries into preseason, should tell the story. For now, he’s left the door open on both the starting lineup and the rotation around it.
In Other News...
Cavs Just Opened A Door For A Familiar Camp Longshot
Rashaun Agee has gone from Cavaliers Summer League participant to a training camp contract, giving Cleveland another big body to evaluate as camp approaches. Agee brought the kind of traits that can keep a front office interested even without a polished offensive rsum, using his size, rebounding and defense to stand out during his time with the team this summer.
The catch is the roster math still matters, and the Cavs do not have any two-way spots open right now. So Agee is heading into camp with a chance to keep climbing, likely by carving out a path through a G-League deal and then working his way toward a two-way opportunity later if he can keep impressing. [Read more 🡒]
Cavs Get Their First Real Test With A Reshaped Camp Roster
The Cavaliers have put together a training camp roster that gives this fall a different feel, with four new invitees joining the mix as the team heads overseas to start work in Andalusia, Spain. Guards Kadary Richmond and Curtis Jones, along with forwards Zack Austin and Rashaun Agee, are among the fresh faces in a group that still centers on Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.
Camp begins Sept. 29 and includes practices and a scrimmage before the team returns to the United States for preseason games, so this trip should offer Cleveland its first real chance to sort out rotations and chemistry in a live setting. With a reshaped group and a handful of newcomers in the building, the early weeks of camp figure to matter for both evaluation and fit as the Cavaliers start laying the groundwork for the season. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Camp Could Decide Which Young Players Actually Stick
Training camp is going to matter a little more than usual for the Cavaliers young group, with Thomas, NaeQwan Tomlin, Proctor, Porter Jr. and Watson all expected to be in the mix for playing time. Cleveland has enough established pieces to know its shape at the top, but the real intrigue is at the edges of the roster, where these younger players will get a chance to show whether recent flashes can turn into something sturdier.
Preseason is likely to be the cleanest evaluation window for all five, especially with the 2026-27 season in mind. Strong camp work and real game minutes could help separate the players who are ready to stick from the ones who still need more time, and for a group like this, the margins are going to be thin. The Cavaliers do not need all of them to pop, but they do need a few to make a convincing case before the competition gets too crowded. [Read more 🡒]