Coming off an appearance in the Eastern Conference finals, fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers have high hopes for the 2026-27 season, despite the home team's 4-0 loss to the New York Knicks in May. 

Regardless of the drubbing, the Cavs' Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen both improved their play during the 2026 postseason. Then Donovan Mitchell and James Harden both signed new contracts to stay in Cleveland. But one move has fans thinking the Cavs can do something even more special this season.

That move was the offseason trade for Peyton Watson, a 6-foot-8 small forward coming to Cleveland from the Denver Nuggets.

23-year-old fan Dominic Iacobucci believes Watson could be the wing player the team has been missing.

“Watson is a really good addition to the team,” Iacobucci said. “We really haven’t had a small forward that can not only stretch the floor but also be aggressive and create separation to get his own shots. He is also a good player on defense.”

During the 2025-26 NBA season, Watson averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists on 49% shooting and 41% from behind the arc. He also averaged 1.1 blocks and 0.9 steals per game. 

However, the team had to trade Max Strus as part of the five-team trade to acquire Watson. Jacob Cordiak, 22, is upset that the team had to lose Strus.

“I really liked Strus,” Cordiak said. “He’s gritty, plays tough and hustles. He was a great player for the team, and I’ll miss him.” 

Despite losing Strus, Cordiak believes Watson can make a bigger impact than Strus did.

“As much as I loved Strus, he was a little injury-prone,” Cordiak said. “Watson is younger and has a higher upside.”

Strus missed 114 regular-season games during his three-year stint in Cleveland, including 70 last season.

Despite losing Strus, Cordiak believes Watson can help the Cavs do something special this season.

“The East is going to be really competitive this year,” Cordiak said. “But with adding Watson, Mitchell and Harden re-signing and Mobley hopefully taking the next step into an MVP-caliber player, I don’t see why we can’t make a run at the Finals. I mean, we made the conference finals last year. Why can’t we win the whole thing this year?”

The Cleveland Cavaliers have made the playoffs in each of the past four seasons. However, they have not reached the NBA Finals since their four-year run from 2015 to 2018, winning the franchise’s only championship in 2016. 

In the preseason, the Cavaliers went 1-2 with a victory over the Orlando Magic. 

The Cavaliers begin the regular season Oct. 22 against the Philadelphia 76ers before their home opener on Oct. 24 against the Brooklyn Nets.