The Cleveland Cavaliers not only landed the best player in the world this summer, but they also secured one of the best rebounders in the NBA today. There is no question that they have had the best off-season.

The Cavaliers started off by dealing Jarrett Jack and Tyler Zeller in a three-team trade to clear cap space to sign a superstar. They later dealt Alonzo Gee in another cap clearing move. Another minor move includes the Carrick Felix trade to the Utah Jazz for John Lucas, Malcolm Thomas, and Erik Murphy. Lucas, although undersized, plays with a lot of passion and energy on offense. He may see some minutes as a backup point guard if Cleveland opts to keep him.

All those early moves gave Cleveland the notion to sign the best costless agent on the market, LeBron James, and they did just that. James said goodbye to Miami, a place where he won two rings, to return home to Cleveland.

He immediately puts the Cavaliers into championship contention. We all know LeBron’s work. He is a topnotch all-around player. He will supply the Cavaliers with superior perimeter defense, rebounding, play making, ball handling, scoring, and leadership. LeBron will make his new teammates better and pull Cleveland back out of mediocrity.

In addition to securing such talent, the Cavaliers also snagged one of the best rebounders in the NBA, Kevin Love. However, Cleveland had to pay a steep price to obtain Love by trading its 2014 number one overall pick Andrew Wiggins along with Anthony Bennet and a future first-round pick. Nevertheless, the Cavs want to win now and believe that they can with Love on board.

Kevin Love has career averages of 19.2 points and 12.2 rebounds. He will help Anderson Varejao with the rebounding load, while he aids LeBron James and Kyrie Irving with the scoring load. Love could pop out and shoot threes as well, which makes him the perfect fit for LeBron because Love will not clog the driving lanes. Love has also established into an underrated passer. He is one of the best when it comes to launching long distance, touchdown-like passes and surely James and Irving will be the beneficiaries of those passes.

Not only was Cleveland able to vastly improve its starting unit, but it was also able to enhance more bench depth. They signed three key players this summer – Shawn Marion, Mike Miller, and James Jones.

Mike Miller has played with James before and is coming off a splendid season with the Memphis Grizzlies. The 34-year old is feeling healthier and is ready to deliver three-point shooting off the Cavs bench.

James Jones is also a deadly three-point shooter. He shot 51.9 percent from beyond the arc for the Miami Heat last season. He, too, has played with James and is a player who understands his role, which is to spot up and shoot.

Shawn Marion’s acquisition was the icing on the cake for Cleveland. He is a longtime veteran with defensive capabilities and flexibility. Marion was the one who was defending LeBron James during the 2011 NBA Finals and gave the superstar many fits. Now, he is on the same team as James and figures to play the same defensive role, instead off the bench.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are now once again title contenders, and many believe that they could actually win it all. It is a matter of wait-and-see, but if the chemistry is there, Cleveland will indeed succeed. Despite losing Anthony Bennett, C.J. Miles, Luol Deng, Tyler Zeller, Jarrett Jack, Spencer Haws, and this year's number one overall pick this off-season, Cleveland has built an intimidating team for sure, one that will be topping the Eastern Conference for the next few years.

Grade: A+

Depth Chart:
PG: Kyrie Irving/John Lucas/Matthew Dellavedova/Chris Crawford
SG: Dion Waiters/Mike Miller/Joe Harris
SF: LeBron James/Shawn Marion/James Jones
PF: Kevin Love/Tristan Thompson/Malcolm Thomas/Erik Murphy/Dwight Powell
C: Anderson Varejao/Brendon Haywood/Alex Kirk
Coach: David Blatt

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About the author
Vahan Shakhpazyan
Vahan Shakhpazyan loves the NBA with a passion and has been an avid follower for 18 years. He is a UCR graduate with a BA degree in Creative Writing. The man behind the Facebook page NBA updates.