Cavs News: All-Star voting results, Mitchell the King, trade path

The NBA released the first round of All-Star voting results yesterday afternoon, and it was a mixed bag for Cleveland Cavaliers players. Donovan Mitchell is second among Eastern Conference guards, a good sign for his chances of starting the All-Star Game next month in Salt Lake City, Utah.

For the Cavs’ other stars, it was less happy news. Darius Garland is all the way down in 10th among East guards, behind a number of deserving candidates plus Derrick Rose, getting a name-recognition and New York-market boost. In the frontcourt Jarrett Allen is 10th and Evan Mobley is somewhere lower than that, with Nic Claxton and Kyle Kuzma standing out as questionable choices above them.

The fan voting will be 50 percent of the calculus used to determine the All-Star Starters, so it matters but it’s not the end of the process. Even if Donovan Mitchell finishes second to Kyrie Irving in the fan vote, he will likely be first in the media vote and the player vote, securing him a spot as a starter. For Garland, Allen and Mobley their chances of starting are nil with this release, but that’s fine; it’s the NBA’s coaches who will determine the reserves and whether a second Cavaliers player will make it.

More Cavs news

Speaking of future All-Star Starter Donovan Mitchell, here at the site John Suchan wrote on the new “King” of the Cleveland Cavaliers and how Mitchell has taken the mantle from LeBron James. Also on the site, Dan Gilinsky highlighted three Cavs not named Donovan Mitchell whose stock is trending up as 2023 begins.

Jake Fischer has become one of the league’s best news breakers and rumor collectors and is currently writing for Yahoo Sports. His latest piece focused on the Cleveland Cavaliers and their path to adding a quality wing, a path that “won’t be easy” given their limited assets and the high costs around the league.

NBA news

It was a light slate last night and three of the four games were absolutely blowouts. Lauri Markkanen poured in a career-high 49 points to lift the Utah Jazz over the Houston Rockets, while Jayson Tatum has a 29-point triple-double in a 29-point drubbing of the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas. Nikola Jokic barely played in the second-half last night because the Denver Nuggets blew the doors off of the LA Clippers, leading by as many as 43.

The one competitive game of the night saw Ja Morant and the cruising Memphis Grizzlies come out on top of the feisty Orlando Magic. Paolo Banchero continued to cement his Rookie of the Year case with 30 points and nine rebounds, while Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. each cracked 30 points of their own in the eight-point win.

Coming up: The Cavaliers begin their road trip in Denver to take on the Nuggets. Donovan Mitchell will be sitting this one out to rest, so the Cavs will need someone else to step up.