“Thought they were in the CATBIRD seat” NBA insider reveals why Eastern Conference team pulled out of Donovan Mitchell sweepstakes
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Tim Botemps talks about Donovan Mitchell
Donovan Mitchell’s move to The Cleveland Cavaliers was a huge shock to the NBA world and more of a disappointment for the New York Knicks. Mitchell was linked to the New York Knicks since the end of the 2021-22 regular season, but Utah Jazz’s new executive Danny Ainge was not too happy with what the Knicks had on the table.
While discussing the trade on “The Hoops Collective Podcast,” Tim Bontemps gave his insights on the deal and also why Knicks could not finalize the trade. He made some interesting points regarding the same, which could be very much understandable from everyone’s perspective.
Bontemps, while talking about the trade, said, “As we’ve went through the whole process, the Knicks have had the most capital to put in a trade from a draft standpoint and we’ve also consistently heard the Knicks were not willing to put in all that draft capital or even at times necessarily a lot of it because they thought they were in a catbird seat in terms of getting Donovan Mitchell.”
He further added, “To me, Clevleand looked at this like Minnesota did…’Hey look we gotta take a huge swing here, we’ve got Darius Garland, we could pair two All-Star guards together.’”
Despite having capital for Mitchell, Knicks couldn’t add all and play a 3-time All-star with no one left on the roster, which doesn’t make any sense for the player or franchise too. Though the Knicks were eager to add another star alongside Jalen Brunson, Jazz executive Ainge is a shrewd negotiator.
Cleveland Cavaliers are instant playoff contenders after adding Donovan Mitchell.
As part of the Mitchell trade, the Cavaliers also had to let go of Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, and Ochai Agbaji. However, the franchise in return has got a player who is one of the best young players in the league. Donovan Mitchell is not only a prolific scorer but very consistent on his part.
Playing him alongside Darius Garland will allow The Cavs to have dependable guards who are efficient shooters, and can share the ball well. It will increase the Cavaliers’ offensive firepower and will help the Cavs massively as both of them can wreak havoc on defense.
After LeBron James left Cavs in the 2018 off-season, NBA finalists for 4 consecutive seasons found it difficult to make the playoffs. 5-year NBA veteran Mitchell has experience playing in the playoffs and made it to the postseason every season.
For Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland could certainly prove to be the right choice with a great bunch of youngsters. If he can fit in well with the team, the Cavs could become a side worth reckoning with in the East. Adding Mitchell, now allows the Cavs to have a player that can help them in nervy situations. Although he is still young, he has exactly what the Cavs lack.
Though the East has some big teams, like the Philadelphia 76ers, Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, and Milwaukee Bucks, this trade will certainly help the Cavs to make a strong case for the playoffs.
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Kunal Chawda
(600 Articles Published)