The Donovan Mitchell Trade
A little bit of background on myself on September 1st, when Donovan Mitchell was sent to the Cavs. I was working, and one of my best friends calls me. He says, “Quinn, did you hear the news?” I said, “No, what happened?” “Donovan Mitchell is coming to Cleveland.” I was in disbelief, I didn’t think he was telling the truth. But sure enough, the trade did happen, and I was psyched for the rest of the day. Even though I was ecstatic, I didn’t think that Mitchell would look as good as he does for the Cavs right now.
He is averaging 29.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game. He also looks like a way better defender than he did last season for the Utah Jazz, giving a lot more effort on that side of the ball. He is the clear-cut best player on the Cavs, and he should definitely be an All-Star starter, just looking at how his stats are.
Looking at what they gave up, the Cavs had to trade three unprotected first-round picks, two pick swaps, Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, and Ochai Agbaji. Sure, that may seem like a lot, but let’s think about everything the Cavs gave up. Markkanen was not easy to trade, I presume. He was a tremendous floor-spacer and a solid defender at the small forward position, too.
Collin Sexton was looking for a lot of money, and it looked like the Cavs weren’t willing to offer that much money. Ochai Agbaji is a rookie, and wouldn’t be doing anything spectacular for a player who is already 22 years old. The picks shouldn’t be in the lottery, as the Cavs should be looking to contend for years down the line. So yes, it may seem like a lot, but it was definitely worth it.
I’m a huge fan of the trade, and Cleveland hasn’t even reached the playoffs yet. Mitchell has been a great playoff player, averaging 28.3 points, 4.7 assists, and 4.9 rebounds per game in his five playoff appearances in Utah.
Quinn’s grade: A++
The Cavs’ 2022 offseason was a home run for me and many NBA fans. I don’t think the team could’ve done better to improve their roster as it currently was at the time, and they did the right moves.
The roster looked great heading into this season before all of the moves were made, and the Cavs should’ve been in the playoff consideration even before all the signings and trades were completed.