Last season was a rollercoaster for Cavs Legion GC. They were hunting for a consistent lineup all season long and by the time they found it, the season was basically over. This season, they enter with a completely new approach and game plan. Their starting 5 has been set for months now after the acquisition of Doza and the Expansion Draft day trade to bring back Strainer. Add in the reigning DPOY Godddof2K, AllHailTrey, and oLarry and you enter Season 3 with a fun roster full of veterans, good chemistry, and high 2K IQ.

Coach: Austin Peterson

Coach Peterson was hassled last season trying to run a team without a top-end point guard and their record showed it. With Doza in hand at PG this year, they have a chance to create some consistency that they didn’t have in Season 2. Peterson has a clear eye for basketball and with another season at the helm, we should start seeing that level of advancement in his game planning.

Season 2 Team MVP: Godddof2K

It’s hard to not be your team MVP when you win the Defensive Player of the Year award after leading the entire league in steals. Godddof2K proved himself as one of the best on-ball defenders in the entire league last season and he single-handily won a couple of games for Cavs Legion with just his stellar defense. Season 3 for him, however, will be different. It is unclear how important defensive-minded builds will be this year in lieu of 2-way builds that can shoot better than in previous years. If he’s asked to take a bigger role on offense, his defense could slip, but a slip for him is much different than for a lesser defensive player.

Best Stat From Season 2: 100 Made 3s

There are a few stats that show off the good side of the team from Season 2, but the primary focus for Cavs Legion GC in Season 3 is to improve that number. They were at the bottom of the league in both attempted and made 3s, putting a huge strain on their post and paint offense to perform. While AllHailTrey and Strainer are great mid-range shooters, the lack of a perimeter shooting game is unsustainable for a team with playoff aspirations.

Offseason Moves:

Trades Made:

1. Raptors Uprising GC
   1. Acquired: Doza
   2. Traded Away: 2020 2nd Round pick
2. Hornets Venom GT
   1. Acquired: Strainer + 2021 1st Round pick
   2. Traded Away: 2020 1st Round pick + 2021 2nd Round pick

Draft Picks:

59. JoshJay

We mentioned the acquisitions of Doza and Strainer already and to help back them up, they drafted JoshJay in the 4th round to serve as their 6th man. Their backcourt has a ton of room to improve after last season and this trio will have every opportunity to do so. These 3 have enough talent to carry the load.

Projected Lineup:

PG: Doza
SG: Strainer
SF: Godddof2k
PF: AllHailTrey
C: oLarry
6th Man: JoshJay

Few teams in the league have as good of a frontcourt as oLarry and AllHailTrey, not to mention the tremendous chemistry they put on display last season. As one of the only teams with a PF who can shoot like Trey, this is a very unique team, and one that doesn’t really have a comparable team anywhere else in the league. Their classic mix of a low post game with a more modern display of perimeter defense is cool to watch, but the key for this lineup will be able to put it all together every week. We saw last year that sometimes when the defense would be on fire, the offense would be ice cold and vice versa. oLarry did as much as he could to mitigate those issues, but he’s just one player. They were a decent transition team as well last year and that should also give their offense a boost, but shooting at a consistent clip will decide their season.

Season 3 Breakout Candidate: oLarry

Can one of the biggest names in the league be considered a breakout candidate? Absolutely! We have not seen the best oLarry yet in the 2K League. He’s one of the most flexible big men in the league and fills up the stat sheet unlike anyone in the league. Will he score 20 points a game? Probably not, but he will score 13 points while grabbing 16 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. He’s a true 2-way big man and with a consistent lineup and PG coming this season, his production stands to take a huge step forward this season. He won an ESPY last year, and could an All-NBA 2K League plaque be added to the collection after this season?

Best Case Scenario: Playoffs, Late Season Title Run

We’ve brought up a lot of good with this team for Season 3, but they have one huge challenge for this season: Risk. The Doza/Strainer combination is a risk, no question about it. Doza had a tough year last year when he was given the keys to Raptors Uprising’s offense and Strainer performed the best he could but was clearly hampered by not having an elite PG next to him. Trying to predict how the Cavs Legion GC season is going to go is almost impossible. If Doza steps up and becomes a top-end point guard, they are one of the best teams in the league. If he’s not, they may not get close to the playoffs. This team has fantastic chemistry and really seems to be rallying around each other. That kind of brotherhood can pay off in huge ways in a competitive atmosphere, but how far it takes them remains to be seen.