The Cleveland Cavaliers fell short of expectations in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, losing in the first round to the New York Knicks. Despite that, there is still a ton of optimism moving forward for the Cavs, with a core of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley, plus some nice additions this offseason including Max Strus.
When it comes to Spida, Friday was the first day he was eligible to sign a max extension. GM Koby Altman is hoping Mitchell does commit his long-term future to Cleveland, but he knows the on-court success will be the number one key to keeping their star guard.
Via Chris Fedor:
“We’ll have those internal discussions and hopefully keep him, but we have to produce and perform as an organization,” Altman admitted.
However, Altman remains optimistic about Donovan Mitchell remaining in Cleveland considering how much he loves the Cavs organization:
“He’s really, really happy here and he’ll tell you that,” said Altman. “All I can go off is Donovan’s actions and his intentions. He’s with us in Vegas right now. He’s super excited about the future. He’ll be at the game tonight. He’s been in Cleveland multiple times this offseason already. He’s worked out with guys, he’s bringing guys with him wherever he is. All you can go off are those actions and how genuine he talks about his experience in Cleveland. I think he sees the runway of the players around him and the youth around him. All I can go off is his actions and his intentions and they’ve all been really genuine. He also helped us out a lot during this free agency period. He wants this place to be great. He wants to win here.”
Mitchell put up solid numbers in 2022-23, averaging a career-high 28.3 points to go along with 4.4 assists and 4.2 rebounds. The former Utah Jazz standout also shot 38.6% from deep.
He has a player option prior to the 2025-26 season and would hit free agency in the summer of 26′.