"Cleveland's a good team, just got better, more productive offensively"- NBA analyst believes Donovan Mitchell fits perfectly with Cavaliers, says teams prefer stars over draft picks
By acquiring Donovan Mitchell, the Cleveland Cavaliers sent shockwaves throughout the basketball world on Thursday. Many expected the Utah Jazz would eventually be traded to the New York Knicks, but the Cavaliers are clearly going all in with their new shooting guard. The trade could shake things up in the Eastern Conference.
Mitchell has been one of the league's top combo guards and will now team up alongside rising star Darius Garland to form a dangerous backcourt. With Mitchell and Garland generating the offense and the defensive combination of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, Cleveland should have a dynamic starting five.
On the "The Colin Cowherd Podcast," Cowherd said:
"My only concern is, will Donovan Mitchell take shots away from Darius Garland and Evan Mobley? He can be a little bit of a ball hog. Outside of that, to me, Cleveland's a good team – just got better, more productive offensively. I think they can challenge.
"There's always been this belief that in the NBA, a Midwest team – maybe in the NFL, the Packers, too – has to overpay to land of free agent. I don't know if that's true, but I like people that swing big.
"The Minnesota Timberwolves are looking around, going, 'Who gives a rip about draft picks? We got Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards. These are stars. Let's add the best defensive rim protector and go for it.
"Cleveland is saying, "Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, we hit two home runs in the draft. Let's add a veteran All-Star level piece. Let's go for it. I'm for going for it. I love seeing these Midwestern teams – beaten down for years – taking swings."
Cleveland Cavaliers look to surge in the Eastern Conference with acquisition of Donovan Mitchell
The Cleveland Cavaliers' recent acquisition of Donovan Mitchell has sent a message throughout the NBA. Heading into last season, the Cavaliers were expected to be a team that was slowly taking steps forward in their rebuild. But then the team shocked the league with their rapid improvement over the course of one season. They went 44-38 after finishing 22-50 in 2020-21.
Evan Mobley is 21.
Isaac Okoro is 21.
Darius Garland is 22.
Jarrett Allen is 24.
Donovan Mitchell is 25.
That’s quite the core in Cleveland.
If it weren't for injuries last season, there was a chance that the Cavaliers would have finished near the top of the Eastern Conference standings. Now, with some additional firepower, the Cavaliers should continue to rise. If the combination of Garland and Mitchell can work as well as hoped, Cleveland could become a dangerous dark horse in the East.