Cleveland Cavaliers Star Donovan Mitchell Has Three Possible Trade Suitors

If the Cleveland Cavaliers end up having to trade Donovan Mitchell, there are three teams to watch.

Feb 27, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) shoots a free throw in the fourth quarter against the Dallas Mavericks at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. / David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Cavaliers have become optimistic about their future with star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell. Reports have made it sound like Mitchell would prefer to stay with the franchise.

While optimism is a good thing, nothing is done until the pen hits the paper.

Mitchell could still change his mind and decide that he wants to play elsewhere. If that were to happen, the Cavaliers wouldn't have much of a choice but to accomodate him rather than losing him for nothing in free agency.

Ideally, that scenario will never come up. Mitchell would simply just sign a long-term contract with Cleveland and help lead the franchise back to NBA Finals contention in a perfect world.

But, on the chance that he does change his mind and want out, which teams could be potential trade destinations?

CBS Sports has named the top three potential trade suitors for Mitchell. They're all teams that have a good case to make to Mitchell about why he should leave the Cavaliers.

The three teams mentioned are the Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, and Miami Heat.

Of those three teams, two are already championship contenders. Joining the Lakers or Heat would give him a chance to keep contending at a very high level. As for the Nets, they're simply a big market team looking to find a star that can lead them back to contention.

During the 2023-24 NBA season with Cleveland, Mitchell ended up averaging 26.6 points per game to go along with 6.1 assists and 5.1 rebounds. He shot 46.2 percent from the floor overall and knocked down 36.8 percent of his three-point attempts.

Those numbers show why many teams around the league would have interest in acquiring Mitchell.

He's a legitimate superstar and franchise cornerstone type of player. That's exaclty how the Cavaliers view him as well.

Mitchell's decision could come down to whether or not he thinks he can win a championship in Cleveland. All of that will start with who the Cavaliers choose to be their next head coach. That decision could come in the near future.

For now, fans and the franchise will just have to remain patient and hope that Mitchell remains steadfast in his commitment to the team. If he chooses he wants out, the above three teams will be potential front-runners to pull off a blockbuster trade for the star guard.

Hopefully, all of this goes smoothly for Cleveland and the franchise is able to lock Mitchell up to a long-term deal in the near future to put all of the rumors to rest.