#DONOVAN MITCHELL INJURY PLUS#

While it’s bold to label the Cavs - a franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs without LeBron since 1998 - as a true NBA Finals contender before making a playoff appearance, the talent base in Cleveland is now impressive enough to compete at the highest levels of the league if it all comes together. It’s a core that will be really good for this upcoming season, and should only get better in the two seasons after that with Mitchell still under contract. The Cavs suddenly have a convincing argument for the best “big four” in the NBA. It’s a trade that immediately puts pressure on the Cavs to contend in the near future, and limits their future assets to improve the foundation of the team moving forward. It’s a steep price to pay for any player, particularly one who has never made an All-NBA team like Mitchell. 14 overall in the 2022 draft), Lauri Markkanen, and Sexton to complete the deal. Cleveland included Ochai Agbaji (who they just drafted at No.

#DONOVAN MITCHELL INJURY PLUS#

The Cavs acquired Donovan Mitchell from the Utah Jazz for unprotected first round picks in 2025, 20, plus pick swaps in 20. Instead, the Cavs saw an opportunity to add a fourth star late in this offseason, and pushed their chips to the center of the table to get it done. Cleveland could have been content to watch its excellent core develop throughout the 2022-2023 season and beyond with nothing in the way of real expectations.

The Cavs already had a great thing going for them with two young All-Stars in Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, and a freakish 7-footer in last year’s rookie Evan Mobley. Cleveland would have made the playoffs anyway under the NBA’s traditional postseason format, but they were knocked out in the play-in tournament by the Atlanta Hawks. After owning the NBA’s second worst cumulative record over the three seasons that followed LeBron James’ departure to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Cavs were on-fire to start the 2021-2022 campaign, taking the Eastern Conference’s third best record into the All-Star break (which was actually 70 percent of the way through the season).Įventually the Cavs ran out of gas thanks mostly to a stagnant offense that dearly missed guards Collin Sexton and Ricky Rubio, who each suffered season-ending knee injuries.

The Cleveland Cavaliers were the most pleasant surprise in the NBA last season until the weight of injuries sent their playoff dreams down the tubes.

Donovan mitchell injury