After the Cavaliers defeated the Celtics, how sure is Mitchell going to the Lakers?

Qing Yang said

2024-05-18 18:10Posted in Anhui Sports Creators

If you have an annual salary of 300 million, would you rather be in first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, or second-tier provincial capitals such as Hefei and Wuhan?

If you didn't win the championship, would you rather be in Cleveland or Los Angeles?

If you were the same boss, would you rather be the king of the mountain in the Cavaliers, or would you be the team's flag after two years of patience in the Lakers?

After the Cavaliers lost 98-113 to the Celtics and were eliminated 1-4 to end the season, the question has been placed in front of Donovan Mitchell and his team.

He played three of the five games, missing the last two with a calf strain, more likely an Achilles tendon. But he still averaged 31.6 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game, and the game won by the Cavaliers, his 29 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists turned out to be the fewest scoring game.

He's still the same Mitchell who gets to the playoffs more aggressively than the regular season, and in the NBA, this trait is extremely valuable for a star.

But the Cavaliers are still much worse than the Celtics on the other side.

The "twin towers and two guards" combination of three All-Stars + 1 list eyes boasted before the season, Garrett Allen hung up the exemption card, and Garland was completely beaten back to its original shape in this round of the series. His only reliable helper was Mobley for three years.

It was certainly not what he wanted.

After all, before coming to the Cavaliers, he was also the boss of the team, with Gobert, Conley, Boyang around him, and even won the first place in the league.

He has been selected as an All-Star for five consecutive years and averaged 25+ per game for four consecutive seasons, but what he needs is a bigger stage and closer to the center of the league's power.

And in today's east, with the strength of today's knights, it is indeed a bit difficult.

This is also the reason why he broke out this season that "if you can't make it to the finals, you will think carefully about the future".

Since you can make money wherever you go, you have to pursue something of a higher level.

Although his five-year, $151 million contract with the Jazz in 2020 expires in 2025, Mitchell has the right to jump out of the contract at the end of next season.

That is, if the Cavaliers cannot complete the contract extension with Mitchell before February 2025, it is very likely that they will face the embarrassing situation of him leaving in the end.

You must know that in order to get him last year, the Cavaliers sent three first-round +2 swaps, and Markkanen, who is still the quasi-cornerstone of the Jazz!

Arguably, the most important job for the Cavaliers in the offseason is to complete an early contract extension with Mitchell, otherwise he will be the hottest trade target in the league for the foreseeable next year.

According to current reports in the American media, in addition to staying with the Cavaliers, Mitchell's most ardent suitors are the Nets in the East and the Lakers in the West.

Needless to say, after the disintegration of Duhaou, although they have high-quality outside players such as Bridges, Cameron Johnson, and Thomas, they really lack stars on the team, and they are ranked 11th in the East this year and missed the playoffs early.

Although Mitchell's level is far from the once brilliant three-star, it is already considered the top outside line in the East, and the Nets are located in New York, although they are not as popular as the Knicks, but they are big cities, and the attraction to Mitchell is obvious.

Of course, any star flowing to the market must be indispensable to the Lakers as a competitor, and they can also be called the NBA's "price link".

However, this time the Lakers are no longer the "down-and-out aristocrats" of the previous two years, and they have come out of the failed big trade of Wei Shao over time.

With up to three first-round picks (24, 26, 29 or 25, 28, 30) and multiple first-round swaps this year, Reeves, Hachimura, and Vincent could all be good trade chips. Based on the strength and recent performances of these players, they are good chips for most teams.

No, there are already media outlets that have devised an offer for the Lakers:

The Lakers sent Reaves, Hachimura, Schifino and three first-round picks to get Mitchell.

Losing to the Nuggets for two consecutive years has proved that the Lakers' current core lineup with Zhan Mei as the core, plus Reaves, Russell, and Hachimura, is still not competitive enough.

Although this year's game against the Nuggets has made a lot of progress compared to last year, the difference in strength between the two teams is still obvious.

Considering that LeBron's competitiveness will continue to diminish with age in the future, it can be said that the Lakers' current winning logic will only become more fragile over time.

Therefore, it is almost inevitable that the core structure of the team will be upgraded and reorganized, and the Lakers' thinking of using the Zhan Mei duo as the cornerstone of the team must change.

In fact, after the failure of Wei Shao's big trade, the Lakers still adopted the idea of small repairs and small repairs.

Whether it is Russell, who is at the quasi-All-Star level, or Reaves, who is cultivated by the Lakers, let alone the tactical role of truly replacing James, it is beyond his power to become the No. 3 person at the All-Star level in the current league.

This season, the Lakers have tried their best to strengthen the roster, but in the end they have found that there are not many players to rely on. This is also a big reason why they had such ups and downs in the regular season and had to play the play-offs in the end.

To get out of this situation, it is necessary to bring in new forces that are playing at the same level as or even higher than James throughout the season.

Only if LeBron becomes the Lakers' No. 3 or even No. 4 man on the court will they really have the possibility of challenging for the championship.

And at present, it can really be said that James and his fans are willing to hand over the scepter on the court in the Lakers and use hard power to become the core of the Lakers in the future.

Mitchell alone.

He's certainly not the best player in the league right now, but he's the only player who has the potential to enter the market and get it to the Lakers.

You don't have the opportunity to get a player of his level every year, you want Doncic, Alexander, Edwards, Tatum, but the team has long covered them tightly, and the Lakers don't even have a chance to make an offer.

At the heart of the deal now is Mitchell's wishes, or where Mitchell ultimately wants to go, is entirely up to him.

If he chooses to stay, then he can quickly complete a four-year $205 million contract extension with the Cavaliers, and all suitors, including the Lakers, will be able to wash and sleep.

If he doesn't want to stay in Cleveland, he just needs not to renew his contract early, and the Cavaliers will be as anxious as ants on a hot pot and take the initiative to push him to the trade market.

And those suitors are not the highest bidders, completely depending on Mitchell's wishes, he does not have the situation that Lillard wanted to go to the Heat last year.

Coach Lee has four years on his contract, he only has one year left, and no team will pay a premium for him in exchange for a year.

Any team that gets Mitchell will definitely have a promise that he is willing to renew his contract in advance, otherwise it will just be a pick-up for the Cavaliers.

So that's why the Lakers can be the favorite to chase Mitchell.

Their chips certainly aren't the most lucrative, but Los Angeles' location, James' presence, and the natural "superstar partner" of Bushy Eyebrows are still competitive.

As a LeBron fan, I was able to work with him at the end of his idol career, and then take over his banner to become the leader of the league's number one giant, as well as the assistant of Thick Eyebrows, who has superstar strength and is willing to be the second leader.

Can Mitchell resist such a temptation?

Finally, I attach a photo of Mitchell as a teenager, wearing LeBron's No. 23 jersey when he went to the NBA for the first time in 2009.

View original image 173K

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•