Cleveland Cavaliers announce 2023-24 preseason schedule

The Cleveland Cavaliers 2023-24 preseason schedule has been revealed with their first game taking place on Oct. 10 away against the Atlanta Hawks.

The Cavs will return home for games against the Orlando Magic (Oct. 12) and Maccabi Ra’anana of the Israeli National League (Oct. 16) before concluding the preseason on the road versus the Indiana Pacers (Oct. 20).

These games will serve as the unofficial start of Cleveland’s road to redemption following their bitter first round exit in the playoffs. The Cavs won 51 games last season before a swift five-game exit courtesy of the New York Knicks.

While most of the schedule is business as usual, the Cavaliers' matchup against Maccabi Ra’anana will offer a change of pace. This will be Cleveland’s first game against an international team since facing San Lorenzo de Almagro of Argentina’s Liga Nacional de Básque in 2019.

The Cavaliers will also head to Paris later in 2024 for a regular season game against the Brooklyn Nets, the franchise's first-ever game in Europe. So while no one from the Cavaliers joined Team USA this summer for the FIBA World Cup, this young roster will still get a taste of international basketball one way or another.

During the preseason, Cleveland can look forward to the introduction of multiple newcomers. Max Strus and Georges Niang will make their Cavalier debuts with a chance to showcase their floor-spacing abilities. Both Strus and Niang were added to the roster this offseason for their talent as three-point shooters.

Meanwhile, there is nticipation to see rookie Emoni Bates compete on an NBA floor for the first time. The No. 49 pick is not guaranteed to play in the regular season but should be able to see minutes during Cleveland’s four preseason games. Summer League standouts Isaiah Mobley, Sam Merrill and Craig Porter Jr. could earn minutes during the preseason as well.

The official 2023-24 NBA season is reported to begin on Oct. 24 but the Cavaliers first game has yet to be announced. This season will also mark the NBA’s first-ever In-Season Tournament, with Cleveland in the same group as their upcoming preseason foes Atlanta and Indiana.