2021–22 Cleveland Cavaliers season

The 2021–22 Cleveland Cavaliers season was the 52nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The regular season for the league began in the month of October and featured the typical 82-game schedule, returning to its typical format. In the previous season, the league started in the month of December and featured only 72 games due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The Cavaliers had the third pick in the 2021 NBA draft, and selected Evan Mobley out of the University of Southern California. The NBA announced that the All-Star Game will be played at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, which was held February 20, 2022. The Cavaliers matched their previous win total of 22 on January 7, 2022, improving to 22–17. The Cavaliers clinched their first winning season without LeBron James since 1998 and their first winning season since 2018 with a 107–101 win over the Orlando Magic on March 28, 2022. The Cavaliers qualified for the postseason, but failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season after losing to both the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks in the play-in tournament.

Draft

With their sole selection in the 2021 NBA draft, the Cavaliers selected Evan Mobley from the University of Southern California as the third overall pick.