Cavaliers News: Optimism, Mitchell extension, Buddy trade

The Cleveland Cavaliers are now only a week away from the start of Training Camp, with the regular season peeking out from just around the corner. Media Day will be on Monday, October 2nd, and the Cavaliers will face questions from “Who is starting” to “Why hadn’t Koby Altman faced discipline from the team?”.

That makes this the final offseason edition of Cavaliers News; next Tuesday we will recap Media Day and look ahead to the preseason slate. It’s been a long wait since the New York Knicks unceremoniously bounced the Cavs from the playoffs, and the revenge tour is about to begin.

Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report recently wrote about how the Cleveland Cavaliers should be optimistic about Evan Mobley’s development. Defensively, he’s one of the five or so best players in the league already, with a level of versatility only a few players can match. He can defend anyone on the court and allow his team to execute nearly any defensive scheme.

Bailey points out that Mobley looked overwhelmed by playoff basketball, but that speaks to the upside still before him. With that experience now under his belt, Mobley’s step forward this season can include being better prepared for the postseason crucible. As Bailey writes, “a third-year leap could be on the way, and that could dramatically alter Cleveland’s long-term upside.”

Donovan Mitchell is now eligible for a contract extension, but he has very little incentive to sign such a deal. The same basic veteran extension will be available to him a year from now, and that will give him more information about what the Cavs look like moving forward.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the most plugged-in source for Cavaliers news among national media members, explains why he and the Cavaliers’ organization do not expect Mitchell to sign an extension:

While the Diamond Sports Group still faces financial destitution, to start the season games for the Cleveland Cavaliers will continue to be aired on the Bally Sports network. Local Ohio residents can tune into Bally Sports Ohio starting with the Cavs’ preseason game on October 10th against the Atlanta Hawks.

Cleveland.com writer and Cavaliers insider Chris Fedor has been adamant lately that Max Strus is locked in as the final starter. Caleb Crowley looks at that claim and examines his fit with the starters.

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report predicted rookie extensions for the entire 2020 Draft Class, and we took a minute here on the site to dig into his reasoning and what to expect from the negotiations.

• Co-site expert Dan Gilinsky highlights yet another reason for optimism about Emoni Bates
• Alex Knodel highlights three free agents that remain available for the Cavaliers to sign
• Who was the best Cavaliers player to wear each number? Co-site expert Josh Cornelissen digs deep into the history books to answer that question

Once Training Camp begins, the odds of a blockbuster trade diminish. That’s why trade discussions have ramped up in the past week and will only get louder over this final week before the start of camp.

For the Cavaliers, the latest rumors were linking them to Buddy Hield. Our team covered that possibility from multiple angles:

• Caleb Crowley examines the question: Should the Cavaliers target a Buddy Hield trade?
• Gibson Lowenberg makes the case: Why trading for Hield would be a colossal mistake
• Josh Cornelissen puts rumors to action and builds a mock trade proposal, then plays “Grade the Trade” on the idea

Be sure to stay plugged into the Cavaliers and King James Gospel as Media Day kicks off the 2023-24 season on Monday and Training Camp starts the next day. We’ll be here to cover it all for you!