The Cavs are without 4 starters. Here's why there's a silver lining

CLEVELAND —The Cavaliers have more All-Stars attending games in street clothes than in a uniform these days.

It isn't a position they'd like to be in very often. And it's their nightmare scenario for April, May or June, when they hope to make a deep playoff run well beyond the second round.

But for a team with a virtual certainty to make the playoffs? There might be a silver lining to having the end of the bench see an uptick in minutes for a stretch of games early in the season.

The Cavs have an injury list longer than a CVS receipt. In a 112-101 loss to the Toronto Raptors on Halloween night, they were without All-Star guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland , small forward Max Strus, center Jarrett Allen and guard Sam Merrill , who before going down with a hip injury