Cavs’ Aborted Playoff Run May Still End Up Being A Net Loss When It Comes To Acquiring Mitchell
Cleveland All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell appeared utterly disgusted when his team fell behind by 17 points to visiting Orlando midway through the second quarter of its do-or-die Game 7 in the first round of the playoffs.
Mitchell, who put up 50 points during the Cavs’ Game 6 loss, wasn’t getting any more help from his teammates on a night where he didn’t have his “A” game. Evan Mobley was invisible in the offense while Darius Garland was chucking bricks. From the looks of things, the 48-win Cavs were headed for an ignominious defeat to the inexperienced Magic.
Nets fans were paying attention. Mitchell, who has one more year left on his Cleveland contract (2025-26 is a player option), seems to be the “star” who is most attainable for Brooklyn this summer, at least according to popular opinion. A native New Yorker, Mitchell has reportedly mused in the past about playing in his home city. He is allegedly close with Nets wing Mikal Bridges and, with the Knicks revolving around MVP candidate Jalen Brunson, would provide a more seamless fit basketball-wise on the Brooklyn side of the river.
How many games did the Nets lose this past season because their end game execution stunk? Mitchell, who has averaged nearly 25 points per game over his seven-year NBA career, himself willed the Cavs to several victories over Brooklyn in the past two seasons with crunch-time heroics—on both ends. At that moment on May 5, it sure seemed like the Nets were a plausible outlet for Mitchell if he was truly disgruntled.
However, things change. Not only did Cleveland battle back to knock out Orlando, with Mitchell making a point to seek out and hug Garland after a clutch bucket, but the Cavs had an interesting visitor to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for Monday’s second-round Game 4 against Boston—LeBron James.
Mitchell didn’t even play that night—nor in Wednesday’s elimination loss at Boston—due to a left calf strain. But the speculation regarding James was rampant. Was the local hero and one-time Cavs legend looking to return to his roots? What if the Cavs selected USC’s Bronny James with the No. 20 overall pick in June’s NBA Draft and then cleared the requisite cap space for LeBron, a free agent if he opts out of his contract, to realize his dream of playing with his son? A James/ Mitchell duo would certainly be an imposing combination, especially in the weaker Eastern Conference.
From all public declarations, Cleveland’s brass has zero interest in taking steps backward. To the contrary, they’re trying to sell a second-round loss as progress. The Cavs surrendered three unprotected first round picks, two pick swaps, and three players, including All-Star Lauri Markkanen, to Utah for Mitchell’s services in the 2022 offseason; they invested big money in Garland and extended guard Caris LeVert and center Jarrett Allen after both came over from Brooklyn as part of the 2021 James Harden blockbuster. If not for injuries that severely undercut Cleveland’s ability to hang with top seed Boston, with Allen and LeVert joining Mitchell on the sidelines for Wednesday night’s defeat, the organization sees itself as a sustainable contender in the East.
Still, Cleveland’s elimination has already set in motion the hot topic amongst NBA pundits: Was that Mitchell’s last night as a Cav? The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported on Wednesday that the organization is willing to do whatever it takes to get Mitchell to sign a 4-year max extension, even if it means firing Head Coach J.B. Bickerstaff. Personally, I believe they’d have to be blown away to move Mitchell.
That is, unless Mitchell actively forces his way out, which he has yet to do. If he, for instance, declines to discuss an extension this summer, that would put Cleveland in the tough spot of potentially losing him for nothing the next year.
And only then would Brooklyn be in the game—against multiple players. Miami and Los Angeles are attractive destinations for many NBA players, though I don’t envision Heat President Pat Riley going all-out for Mitchell in a bidding war. It’s not his style, but you never know.
The Nets’ biggest obstacle to landing a star is not their will (they have a sizable cupboard of draft pick assets to deal, with the three unprotected 1s from the Suns considered the most valuable), but their reputation. They were a mess this season, losing 50 games and quickly reverting to irrelevancy following their short-lived superstar era. Coaching was a major issue, something that an attentive vet like Mitchell had to notice.
Though frequently hampered by injuries, Mitchell, 27, is in his prime. I don’t suppose he’d be willing to waste these next few years on a team that isn’t ready to contend beyond a middling playoff seed, like Cleveland is now. If he were to indeed request a break from the Cavs, he might choose to be in the market for something bigger.
Any trade for Mitchell this offseason would have to keep Brooklyn under the luxury tax line of approximately $172 million for the 2024-25 season. Falling into the repeater tax category, with its penalties and restrictions, makes no sense at this stage. The contracts on Brooklyn’s books for 11 players (including the nonguaranteed deal for Jalen Wilson) total about $134 million, per Sportac.com, with only center Nic Claxton deemed somewhat close to a “must-sign” free agent for no more than a projected $25 million AAV.
Unless Cleveland agrees to take on the expiring $40.3 million contract of medically-impaired Ben Simmons—and with Utah owning the Cavs’ 2025 first-rounder outright, they have no reason to bottom out—it will be hard for Brooklyn to pony up the matching salary in a Mitchell trade without further depleting their depth.
For example, it would take Dorian Finney-Smith, Dennis Schroder, Cam Thomas, and Keita Bates-Diop (plus picks!) for the Nets to acquire Mitchell in a two-team deal. Of course, Nets General Manager Sean Marks can expand the trade and find ways to utilize one of Brooklyn’s many trade exceptions to take on other players, so long as the tax line isn’t breached. The easiest way would be to find a third team to dump Simmons on, but expending a pick to do so has reportedly been dismissed by Marks.
As a Nets fan, I would welcome a trade for Mitchell this summer. From what I’ve gathered, the feeling, at times, has been mutual—and others when Brooklyn’s dysfunction has made him think twice about it.
If you recall the events leading up to the 2019 Clean Sweep, it was the Nets’ internal growth that preceded it and played a large role in luring the stars to Brooklyn, in contrast with the chaos in Manhattan. The current Nets aren’t in the same body of water, never mind the same boat.
Had Cleveland fallen against the Magic, I could see how Mitchell’s eyes might have started to look around for what’s next. Two straight first-round exits with home court advantage can have that effect. Now, he has every reason to play this out patiently, waiting to see how Cleveland addresses its shortcomings before making a call that drops the hammer on them.