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The Cleveland Cavaliers can’t afford to move on from Donovan Mitchell so soon

By Chad Porto

CLEVELAND, OHIO - APRIL 18: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers waves to the crowd during the fourth quarter of Game Two of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the New York Knicks at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on April 18, 2023 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Knicks 107-90. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - APRIL 18: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Cleveland Cavaliers waves to the crowd during the fourth quarter of Game Two of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs against the New York Knicks at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on April 18, 2023 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Knicks 107-90. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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The Cleveland Cavaliers may be moving on from Donovan Mitchell sooner rather than later.

The Cleveland Cavaliers could find themselves without superstar Donovan Mitchell sooner, rather than later. Despite initially being hyped to land in Cleveland, with reports saying he ran around excitedly at the golf course he was at, there are now those in the know who think Mitchell is angling to get out of Cleveland as soon as possible.

According to the Athletic’s Jason Lloyd, people in the league believe that Mitchell is likely to move on from Cleveland and join up with the New York Knicks eventually. That’s not to mention that Mitchell was seen playing golf with Allan Houston a few weeks back. Houston is Vice President of Basketball Operations and is the Player Leadership & Development for the Knicks G-League team.

To say his playing golf with Mitchell is sketchy is an understatement. Mitchell is from New York and so far he’s said and done just about everything he can do to make the fans of Cleveland comfortable with him. Yet, that desire to go back to New York is clearly there. I don’t blame him for that, but the Cavs can’t afford to not have him around.

Not anytime soon, that is.

The Cleveland Cavaliers can’t afford to just move on from Donovan Mitchell

Mitchell is under contract for another two seasons, and the Cavs have to go all in on the next few seasons if they believe that Mitchell is the answer. They gave up too much to get him, including All-Star forward Lauri Markkanen, who shockingly ended up being the type of player the Cavaliers desperately needed in the 2022-2023 season.

Had the trade involved someone like Isaac Okoro instead of Markkanen, then the onus to win wouldn’t be so suffocating. But Mitchell is only two seasons away from leaving for New York, and if he just waltzes out of Cleveland to New York in free agency, then the Cavs would have lost a superstar for nothing.

The problem is, that unless the Cavs ship him to New York or maybe Brooklyn, the Cavaliers aren’t going to get back anything worth having for Mitchell. The Cavs gave up a lot of draft picks, Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, and Markkanen, for a player who was plugged in as the centerpiece of the offense.

A move that was largely a bad idea. Now the Cavs have to find a way to appease Mitchell, while also shopping him at the same time. They’re not going to get back half of what they gave up but they may be able to do a player-for-player swap. Getting back an All-Star caliber player is the only thing that the Cavs can realistically do, outside of just running him out in a Cavs jersey for the next two seasons. And while an All-Star for an All-Star isn’t a bad idea, its a far cry from Mitchell’s actual value.

With the Cavs as a whole not wanting to make major changes to the roster, they don’t have a lot of options beyond just running things back. Hoping that the minor changes they made are enough to make them a contender.

Next. 3 reasons why the Cleveland Cavaliers have a good shot to win the East next year. dark

  • Published on 06/13/2023 at 01:26 AM
  • Last updated at 06/13/2023 at 01:26 AM
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