BOSTON — The injured Donovan Mitchell remained in the halls of TD Garden long after his Cleveland Cavaliers lost Game 5 to the Boston Celtics 113-98, high-fiving each of his teammates as he left the arena and congratulating rival Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown on his own exit.
There was no way of knowing if this was the five-time All-Star point guard’s farewell to the organization he had known for the past two seasons, even when The Athletic published its post-mortem on the Cavs’ seasoncomplete with speculation about Mitchell’s wayward status and the future of coach JB Bickerstaff, who in the aftermath of this series called this “a difficult year for us – for a number of different reasons”.
Mitchell, relegated to street clothes for the last two losses of the series due to a left calf strain, was not released to the media. For his part, Bickerstaff said, “I’m going to keep showing up until they tell me not to.”
Cleveland framed its elimination in the Eastern Conference semifinals as a springboard for last year’s disappointing first-round loss, but behind every answer were lingering questions about what comes next this offseason.
“We have a good team,” Bickerstaff said, changing the subject of Mitchell’s status. “We have good individual players. We have high-character players who are concerned about winning. Any time you have that, you have an opportunity. I would love to see what we look like when we’re in one piece for a full season, what pressure we can put on the league from that point.” from sight, but we have a good basketball team with guys who want to win and guys who want to get better.”
Two years ago, the Cavaliers had no ceiling. Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen were All-Stars for the first time. Rookie Evan Mobley looked like a young Kevin Garnett. All of them were under 25 years old. Together, they formed the foundation of a 44-win team that narrowly missed the playoffs, largely due to injuries.
The sky was the limit, and Cleveland’s front office reached it immediately, outbidding the New York Knicks by trading Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton and the rights to six first-round draft picks for Mitchell. That deal yielded a playoff series victory and a lot of roster redundancy over two years.
Whether or not Mitchell requests a trade from the Cavaliers this summer, there are real doubts he will re-sign in Cleveland when his $37.1 million player option expires in 2025. The time to recoup some of what the Cavaliers spent on Mitchell is this summer, when any number of teams come asking for your services.
“I trust Koby [Altman] and the front office who will make the right decisions to improve this team,” Bickerstaff said, “because that’s what they’ve always done. They are a big part of the reason this team improves.”
What are these Cavs without Mitchell? That largely depends on the development of Garland and Mobley. Without Mitchell or Allen available for the final two games of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Garland and Mobley lost back-to-back games – and the series – for the Celtics, who looked much like the same 44-win team from two seasons ago, only this time at verge of dissolution.
There’s no doubt that Mitchell hindered Garland’s development, as Allen did with Mobley.
Garland averaged 25.5 points (on 60% true shooting) per 36 minutes when Mitchell was off the court in the playoffs, according to PBP stats. He became a small — and inefficient — player when Mitchell was on the court, averaging 12.6 points (on 50% true shooting) per 36 minutes, according to PBP Stats.
Some of this is natural. Garland has more opportunities when Mitchell is on the bench. But you want a 24-year-old point guard at maximum salary to be more than an afterthought when your team is at full strength.
Mobley and Allen present a similar conundrum. The Cavaliers were better when one of them was on the court than when they were both playing together. We’ve seen them forge a robust defense with two bigs, but it’s practically impossible in this season to build a potent attack with a pair of clogs.
“As I got more and more reps, I got really comfortable with it,” Mobley, who scored a career-high 33 points in the playoffs in Wednesday’s Game 5 loss, said of the starting center role previously reserved for Allen.
“[Mobley] is a starter no matter what position you want to put him in,” Bickerstaff added. “I’m not going to step into the starting center full-time. We have Jarrett Allen. We love him, what he does for this team and the combination of these two guys. Evan continued to show that he is an excellent basketball player.”
If the Cavaliers believe Mitchell is on the way out and Allen has less upside in the frontcourt — two decent bets — they will have to move both in the offseason. The Cavs need look no further than the locker room across the hall at TD Garden for guidance on how to rebuild a roster around two rising stars.
Tatum and Brown were raised by more established stars. Gordon Hayward ended up becoming an obstacle to the fully realized version of both wings. The Celtics passed on Isaiah Thomas, Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker before handing the keys to their homegrown duo, and once Tatum and Brown were ready, Derrick White’s complementary play was better suited at point guard. Al Horford left and came back, returning with the understanding that the team was no longer his to lead. Boston even traded fan favorite Marcus Smart for Kristaps Porziņģis, adding yet another missing dimension.
That’s when the Celtics went all in, acquiring Jrue Holiday as the final piece of a puzzle that produced 64 regular-season wins and an easy path to the conference finals. It was a process that lasted seven years.
The Cavaliers are now three seasons into their project — with more questions than answers.
The biggest question is whether Garland and Mobley can reach the heights of Tatum and Brown. They will be paid however they can. Garland just signed his first five-year contract worth $197 million. Mobley is eligible for an extension this summer and is almost certain to get the maximum as well. Stunted by Mitchell and Allen, Garland and Mobley haven’t shown the growth at their ages that we saw from Tatum and Brown.
Count veteran forward Marcus Morris, who also played two seasons with Tatum, among those in the Cavs organization who believe in the 22-year-old Mobley’s ability to make a similar leap to stardom.
“It’s crazy that the big guy reminds me so much of him, just watching him grow up,” Morris said. “I’ve been a big fan of Ev for the few years he’s been in the league and I think he has a good chance to make the same leap that I’ve seen Tatum make. these types of lights allow you to grow in the off season. Coming into next year, I think this guy here is going to be a problem.
The same may not be true for Garland, who scored 11 points on 4-of-17 shooting in the elimination game. That would make the Cavaliers desperate to keep Mitchell this summer, when he will be eligible for a four-year extension worth about $200 million. If they are successful, it could spell the end for Garland in Cleveland.
The Cavs need to close any deal involving Mitchell or Garland. Players of his caliber rarely return the same value, but Cleveland can seek out complementary talent and replenish its draft stock while maintaining flexibility. Would Brooklyn part ways with Mikal Bridges? Maybe not, as the Bridges-less Nets aren’t as attractive to Mitchell, but this is the type of player whose skill set best complements Cleveland’s remaining stars.
Likewise, the San Antonio Spurs would almost certainly make an offer for Garland, and they have the kind of secondary playmaker (Devin Vassell?) — plus a handful of draft picks — to make a sensible deal for both teams. Once again, small markets are hesitant to part with talented young players who will be signed in the near future. Given the uncertainty surrounding Mitchell’s desire to stay long-term — even if he were to accept a contract extension — it may not be reasonable for Cleveland to give up on a homegrown star.
Allen also has value, but everything still depends on Mobley’s potential. Right now, he and Garland form the nucleus of a good team that has presented little more than a superficial challenge to the Eastern favorites.
What are these Cavaliers without Mitchell? Hopefully we don’t just find out.
