Pre-Season NBA Power Rankings

3. team. 156. <p>For the longest time, Cleveland was struggling. Suddenly, the team was joined by a returning to the nest LeBron James.  Shortly afterwards, the team traded for Kevin Love to add to the trio of James and point guard Kyrie Irving.</p> <p>Despite losing the championship to the Warriors the year before, the Cavaliers stuck to the formula and found success in the 2016 NBA championship against the same Warriors.</p> <p>It will be very difficult to repeat, however.  With the loss of Timofey Mozgov and Sasha Kaun, the Cavaliers are going all in on a smaller lineup.  While there is little chance of that impacting their regular season success, that could prove to be an insurmountable hurdle in the post season.</p> <p>This team found the perfect blend at the perfect time.  That’s a difficult streak to repeat.</p> <p><strong>Key Losses:</strong>Timofey Mozgov<br /> <strong>Key Gains:</strong>  Retaining LeBron James.<br /> <strong>Key Statistic</strong>: Shooting accuracy<br /> <strong>NBA Power Rankings:</strong> 3rd</p>. (60-22). Previous: . Cleveland Cavaliers