Christmas time is here again, but for the city of Cleveland, their gift came back around Labor Day.
The Perfect Gift
The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell from the Utah Jazz in a vast trade that sent the Jazz Three players, forward Lauri Markkanen, guard Collin Sexton, and the Cavalier’s 2022 first-round pick Ochai Agbaji. They also sent three unprotected first-round picks and two pick swaps.
It might have been a lot for the Cavaliers to give up, but Mitchell is a star, and it was well worth it. Mitchell spent five seasons in Utah and was named an All-Star three times.
Mitchell is still very young, turning 26 years old a few months ago and just entering his prime. It’s not every day that an NBA team like the Cavs acquires a star player entering his prime. The team saw an opportunity and ran with it.
The Young Stars
The Cavaliers were a great surprise in the 2021-2022 season with third-year point guard Darius Garland, center Jarrett Allen being named All-Stars, and their third pick in the 2021 NBA Draft Evan Mobley being a phenomenal rookie and almost winning Rookie of the Year.
The Cavaliers made the NBA play in tournament, but they fell to the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks and did not reach the NBA playoffs.
Cleveland needed a wing, and they became huge players when it was known that Mitchell could be traded.
The New York Knicks were supposed to be the team that traded for Mitchell since he was from there, and it always seemed like he and Knicks would be a perfect fit.
The Knicks and Jazz fell out on trade talks, and the Cavaliers swooped in and traded for Mitchell.
The Cavaliers Future Is Bright
Mitchell has been a great player this season for the Cavaliers; he’s averaging 29.5 points, a .503 field-goal percentage, .428 three-point percentage in 29 games. He is on track to have the best year of his career.
Mitchell has this year and two more years under contract before he can opt out of his deal in the 2025-2026 season. So, the Cavaliers will have him for a while, and with how the team is playing and getting better, it wouldn’t be surprising if Mitchell makes Cleveland his home even longer.
The Cavaliers have the third-best record in the Eastern Conference at 22-11, and they just got a big-time win last night against the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Cavaliers are a very young team, and their future is so bright. This team will be around for a handful of years and having a great basketball team in Cleveland again is a joy.
