30 in 30: Buy or sell the Donovan Mitchell hype for the Cleveland Cavaliers?

Taking a closer look at the Cleveland Cavaliers, in our most recent 30 in 30 stop, we explore why everyone should be buying the Donovan Mitchell hype.

As everyone focuses on why the New York Knicks weren’t willing to meet the Utah Jazz’s asking price for Donovan Mitchell, I think it’s only fair that we visit why the Cleveland Cavaliers were. And why we should be buying the hype heading into the 2022-23 NBA season.

On paper, the Cavs are going to be one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. They have a superstar, two rising stars, and one of the most underrated bigs in the league. Oh, and they’re all under the age of 25.

Not only will the Cavs improve as the season unravels, but there’s a chance we may be on the verge of seeing the best version of Mitchell ever. I think it’s easy to forget just how talented Mitchell is. In what was widely considered a “down” season for Mitchell last year, he still averaged 26 points, five assists, and four rebounds on 45 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent shooting from 3-point range.

An argument can be made that the last time Mitchell was fully engaged as a member of the Jazz, he averaged 36 points, five assists, and five rebounds on 53 percent shooting from the field and 52 percent from 3-point range during a seven-game grueling first-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets in the NBA’s restart bubble playoffs.

For his career, in 39 playoff games, Mitchell averaged 26 points, six assists, and four rebounds on 43 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent shooting from 3-point range.

He’s a certified star and a superstar on the offensive end of the court. There’s no question why anyone should be selling the Cavs’ chances now that they’ve acquired Mitchell.