The Cleveland Cavaliers have been urged to take a step back at the 2026 NBA trade deadline. What exactly does that mean?
Many people around the NBA believe the Cleveland Cavaliers need to make some deals at the 2026 NBA trade deadline.
After having the best record in the East last season, the Cavaliers are only 25-20. They are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
However, NBA writer Grant Hughes of Bleacher Report believes Cleveland needs to "take a step back" at the deadline and it has nothing to do with making trades.
"The step back they need to take is all about keeping perspective," Hughes wrote. "Yes, the Cavs are among the league's biggest disappointments. They won 64 games a year ago and featured an offense that set the world on fire. Now, they're on pace for about 20 fewer victories and rarely score at even top-10 rates. While it might be tempting to declare the magic is gone and major trades are in order, the wiser course is to acknowledge bad injury luck up and down the roster.
"Max Strus hasn't played all year, while Darius Garland missed the start of the season and has rarely looked like himself. A toe injury on his other foot will now limit him even further. Jarrett Allen was out for almost three weeks, and the team's core four players—Garland, Allen, Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley—have seen just 350 possessions together. This is not a time for drastic action. Cleveland needs to trust in the roster it built and resist the urge to panic."
The Cavaliers haven't advanced past the second round of the playoffs with Mitchell, Mobley, Garland and Allen leading the way. The Wine and Gold lost to the Indiana Pacers in the second round of the 2025 playoffs despite being the No. 1 seed.
Cleveland isn't going to trade Mitchell or Mobley. Garland and Allen have been in trade rumors, but it doesn't appear that Koby Altman is going to pull the trigger on a trade.
If, however, the Cavaliers fail in the 2026 playoffs again, then Altman may have to break up the "Core 4" in the offseason. This group has had enough chances to make a deep playoff run and they haven't done it yet.
Since acquiring Mitchell from the Utah Jazz, the furthest the Cavaliers have gone in the playoffs is Game 5 of the conference semifinals.
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