{"id":58041,"date":"2023-11-02T14:51:09","date_gmt":"2023-11-02T18:51:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=58041"},"modified":"2023-11-02T14:51:09","modified_gmt":"2023-11-02T18:51:09","slug":"nba-rumors-philadelphia-76ers-eyeing-donovan-mitchell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/11\/02\/nba-rumors-philadelphia-76ers-eyeing-donovan-mitchell\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Rumors: Philadelphia 76ers Eyeing Donovan Mitchell"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even after the Sixers <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/10\/31\/what-the-james-harden-trade-means-for-the-clippers-and-76ers\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">moved on from<\/span><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hardeja01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>James Harden<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, they are still looking for ways to upgrade their roster. HoopsHype\u2019s Michael Scotto revealed that Philly has their eyes set on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/hoopshype.com\/lists\/76ers-rumors-james-harden-joel-embiid-tyrese-maxey-donovan-mitchell-zach-lavine-og-anunoby\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">several young stars<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to replace Harden, including Cavaliers guard <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/mitchdo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Donovan Mitchell<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The Philadelphia 76ers are monitoring Donovan Mitchell\u2019s situation in Cleveland, per <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MikeAScotto?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@MikeAScotto<\/a> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome potential targets to keep an eye on for Philadelphia include Zach LaVine, who can spread the floor and OG Anunoby, who is loved by coach Nick Nurse, which I think is\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/zhLSLkZHx8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/zhLSLkZHx8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheDunkCentral\/status\/1720092734982426938?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">November 2, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2>NBA Rumors: Philadelphia 76ers Eyeing Donovan Mitchell<\/h2>\n<h3><b>Background<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Cleveland Cavaliers are 2-3 this season but are coming off of their best season in the post-<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>LeBron James<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> era: a fourth-place finish with a 51-31 record. It&#8217;s a noble achievement despite their first-round exit in the playoffs. Even with Mitchell at the helm of the promising Cavs, it seems the 27-year-old can\u2019t stay out of trade rumors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the same time, however, it makes sense for Mitchell\u2019s name to pop up given the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/bleacherreport.com\/articles\/10084707-windhorst-donovan-mitchell-cavs-to-reach-pressure-point-with-contract-next-year\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">pressure on the Cavs\u2019 front office for next summer<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The four-time All-Star will be making $34 million in the final year of his extension. He&#8217;ll also be eligible for a $37 million Player Option in 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despite a career year last season\u2014where Mitchell averaged 28.3 points per game on 48% shooting from the field\u2014the athletic guard was inefficient in the playoffs. During Cleveland\u2019s series against the Knicks, Mitchell averaged 23.2 points per game on .433\/.289\/.722 splits. He&#8217;s turned the tables to begin this season and is off to an excellent start. Through five games, Mitchell is averaging 31.5 points per game on 51% shooting from the field and nearly 36% from deep.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Cavs made solid improvements over the summer to address several needs. They traded for ex-Heat guard <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/strusma01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Max Strus<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who played a key role in Miami\u2019s Finals run last year. They also re-signed <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/l\/leverca01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Caris LeVert<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, reunited with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/thomptr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Tristan Thompson<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, signed <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/n\/niangge01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Georges Niang<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jeromty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Ty Jerome<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and brought in rookies on two-way contracts\u2014including standout\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/batesem01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Emoni Bates<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The Cavs opted for minor moves that could have a major impact. However, given the massive upgrades in the conference, it may not be enough to make a deep run.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the Cavs, who are attempting to develop players and build momentum in a loaded East, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/07\/25\/could-donovan-mitchell-leave-cleveland\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a future with Mitchell seems untenable<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> at the moment.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Donovan Mitchell to Philly: Does it Make Sense?<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the Sixers, poaching Mitchell from Cleveland is a solid idea. His role would change significantly\u2014likely becoming the third option behind <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/e\/embiijo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Joel Embiid<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/maxeyty01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Tyrese Maxey<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It seems intriguing at first glance, given Mitchell\u2019s status as a ball-dominant player. However, the possibility of three electric scorers joining forces could lead to some surprises if a trade materializes. Mitchell could move to a motivated squad trying to compete in the East and dismantle the trend of disappearing after the second round. Playing with last season\u2019s MVP and a dynamic point guard is a chance that Mitchell would probably take in a heartbeat\u2014even if it meant giving up his role as a top option.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although the Sixers are right to keep Mitchell on their list of Harden replacements, it\u2019s currently unlikely that Cleveland budges on a trade. The Cavs <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/news\/donovan-mitchell-traded-to-cavs\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">gave Utah<\/span><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sextoco01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Collin Sexton<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/m\/markkla01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Lauri Markkanen<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/agbajoc01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Ochai Agbaji<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and a plethora of picks and pick swaps in exchange for the four-time All-Star last September. Trading Mitchell for a package of role players and picks would swing any previous momentum in the opposite direction\u2014going from a hopeful contender to another round of rebuilding. If things take a turn for the worse in Cleveland, then they\u2019ll have to visit this conversation and take a look at what\u2019s best for both Mitchell\u2019s future and theirs.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>The Last Word<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The 76ers are clearly not done reshaping their roster, now attempting to run \u201cThe Process\u201d through Embiid, Maxey, and whatever third star they acquire. Whether Mitchell is the right fit remains to be seen\u2014as does Cleveland\u2019s willingness to listen to trade offers for their current face of the franchise.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Even after the Sixers moved on from James Harden, they are still looking for ways to upgrade their roster. HoopsHype\u2019s Michael Scotto revealed that Philly has their eyes set on several young stars to replace Harden, including Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell. The Philadelphia 76ers are monitoring Donovan Mitchell\u2019s situation in Cleveland, per @MikeAScotto \u201cSome potential [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4265,"featured_media":55947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4265"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58041"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58041\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}