ESPN gives Cavs’ offseason a B, wonders if full year of James Harden changes everything

ESPN has released its early Cavaliers season preview, which is always useful to read and almost never useful in predicting what will actually happen.

ESPN probably knows this, too. But it has 30 teams and needs 30 previews. So here we are.

The Cavs received a B for their offseason, with Zach Kram describing the moves as “risky but necessary” for a team trying to win now. Cleveland exchanged much of last season’s depth, most notably Max Strus, for Peyton Watson, then gave the 23-year-old wing a four-year, $88 million contract.

Watson is being viewed as the long-awaited fifth starter alongside Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. ESPN also identified Jaylon Tyson as the biggest X factor after he averaged 13.2 points and shot 45 percent from three last season, but then largely disappeared from the playoff rotation.

The big question, naturally, is Harden. He arrived at the trade deadline and still helped the Cavs reach the Eastern Conference finals. Now he gets an entire training camp to figure out Mitchell, the big men and everything else. In theory, that should help. In reality, we will find out.

ESPN’s Basketball Power Index ranks Cleveland 11th, while its post-free-agency power rankings placed the Cavs eighth. That sounds slightly low for a team that reached the conference finals and believes Watson fills its most obvious hole.

Then again, these are September rankings. They exist largely so we can laugh at them in April. The real Cavs preview begins when Harden and Mitchell share the ball, Watson guards somebody important and Tyson tries to prove he belongs in May.

Everything before that is mostly paperwork.