Who Won the Donovan Mitchell Trade?
Grading both sides of the trade between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Utah Jazz
Donovan Mitchell was recently traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a blockbuster deal. In return for the all-star guard, the Utah Jazz were able to acquire Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, Lauri Markannen, three unprotected first-round picks, and two future pick swaps.
This leaves many speculating about the winner of this immense trade. Here I will be giving my thoughts on who received the better package.
The Utah Jazz
Ever since the Rudy Gobert trade, the Utah Jazz have signified that they want a fresh start for their team. In comparison to the other rebuilding teams in the league, they have done a good job in collecting draft capital. In the next few years, the Jazz have 13 first-round picks, which even rivals the likes of the OKC Thunder.
This also means that the rest of the veteran players on the Jazz are likely to be shipped off in the upcoming weeks (Jordan Clarkson, Mike Conley, Bojan Bogdanovic), meaning even more picks for Utah. They’ve also acquired a decent amount of young talent through these trades. Collin Sexton, Talen Horton-Tucker, Walker Kessler, and Ochai Agbaji are all players with bright futures.
Overall, this sets up a nice future for the Jazz franchise and may lead to a championship finally coming to Utah.
Grade: A-
The Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are all in on their current core. This trade signifies how they are set on winning a championship with their new big four of Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and Jarrett Allen. Furthermore, it demonstrates that the Cavs aren’t interested in drafting any more young players and only need to fill out the rest of their roster with veteran role players.
The combination of a win-now team and a team built for the future will make this squad lethal for years to come. Not to mention, the Cavaliers’ bench depth is still very solid. They still have Caris Levert, Isaac Okoro, Kevin Love, Cedi Osman, and Ricky Rubio.
Additionally, the Cavaliers are deadly on both sides of the court. The big man duo of Mobley and Allen solidifies their defense while the backcourt of Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell will make them a high-scoring team.
Lastly, the first-round picks that the Cavaliers gave away are not as valuable as people may think. Since they have a talented, young roster this team will be good for a very long time. This will likely make the picks that they traded be lower-end first-round picks and much less beneficial to the Utah Jazz. This is the key reason why the Cavaliers will be seen as the winners of this trade when it’s all said and done.
Grade: A
Here are my thoughts on who won the Donovan Mitchell trade. Let me know your thoughts on this situation in the comments below.
