Tag: Donovan mitchell

If Jaylen Brown’s supermax doesn’t pan out, what can the Boston Celtics do?

One proposal has them swapping the Cal alum for another East All-Star.

To trade the player on a team with the worst contract on its roster, one must first agree that the deal in question is in fact a bad one. So while we disagree with the notion that All-NBA forward Jaylen Brown is that player for the Boston Celtics after his supermax contract extension, we will admit it could end up looking like it if he doesn’t keep adding to his game if “worst” is a flexible descriptor.

That aside, a recent article by Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley identifies a trade to offload the worst deal on each team in the league and posits a swap of Brown for Cleveland Cavaliers wing Donovan Mitchell. We take issue with this for reasons besides what we’ve ranted about above. The proposal, Brown, Payton Pritchard, and a 2024 first-round pick, would be an overpay in our opinion even sans the draft capital given Mitchell’s poor defense and lack of postseason success.

For Buckley, the selling point is the “wealth of shot-creation (and possibly enough passing)” Mitchell can provide, but what he lacks on the other end of the court (bracketing whether we buy this is a “no-brainer” worst deal to trade) makes this option uninteresting even if Brown doesn’t get better than he is now.

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Celtics’ Jayson Tatum on who he sees as the next face of the NBA

“It’s so many talented guys, young guys in this league,” said Tatum.

During a recent event, Boston Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum was asked about who he thought the next face of the NBA might be, considering the aging of some prominent players of the league today rapidly approaching the end of their primes, some of them already past it. Ever the diplomat, the St. Louis native had an expansive response to the question.

“It’s so many talented guys, young guys in this league. (Philadelphia 76ers star Joel) Embiid, (Denver Nuggets champ Nikola) Jokic, Giannis (Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks star), they are still kind of young, I guess,” answered Tatum via the Boston Globe’s Tom Westerhiolm.

“Then you’ve got guys like me, (Dallas Mavericks star) Luka (Doncic), Jaylen Brown, (Cleveland Cavaliers point guard) Donovan Mitchell, younger than those guys,” added the Duke alum, notably including one of his teammates. “The league is in great hands. So many talented guys.”

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Could Donovan Mitchell be on the Brooklyn Nets’ radar?

According to James Piercey of the NBA Analysis Network, the Brooklyn Nets should be one of the teams interested in getting Donovan Mitchell.

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The Brooklyn Nets appear to have their roster set for next season and will have the next two months to do what they have to do to prepare for training camp in the fall. When it comes to adding players, it’s possible that the Nets could be in the running to acquire a star-level player that isn’t Damian Lillard.

According to James Piercey of the NBA Analysis Network, Brooklyn should be one of the teams interested in Cleveland Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell. It looks like this article was written in response to some rumblings that Mitchell may be traded by Cleveland in the near future because of some issues between him and the Cavaliers.

Tim Bontemps of ESPN recently said that he believes that Mitchell does not sign an extension with Cleveland when the time comes and because of that, he suggests that the Cavaliers trade him while time and leverage is on their side. Brooklyn could be one of those teams that could swoop in with an offer to bring Mitchell to the Nets.

Mitchell, 26, native of Elmsford, New York, has been linked to Brooklyn ever since the Utah Jazz wanted to trade him following their intent to rebuild for various reasons. Mitchell played his AAU ball in New York City and most New Yorkers clamor for one of their own to come back to represent where they came from.

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Projected starting lineup for the Cavaliers with Max Strus after sign-and-trade with Heat

Max Strus has reportedly agreed to a four-year, $64 million deal to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Max Strus has reportedly agreed to a four-year, $63 million deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers after a sign-and-trade with the Heat, per ESPN.

Miami landed Cedi Osman, Lamar Stevens and two second-round picks in the three-team deal that involved the Spurs.

Strus is a 6-foot-5, 27-year-old wing who was an essential piece for the Miami Heat during their run to win the Eastern Conference in 2022-23. He started all 23 games that Miami played during the postseason.

The former undrafted free agent is a very smart pickup because Cleveland connected on the third-fewest 3-pointers per game (10.0) among all teams in the postseason, via NBA.com. Only four players in the league attempted more 3-pointers than Strus (135) during the playoffs.

Here is what the rotation will likely look like for Cleveland with Strus in the mix:

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Check out the star-studded lineup for Greg Newsome’s charity softball game

The stars will be out this Saturday for the event

Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome has talked this offseason about his love for the city of Cleveland. What better way to show that than having a charity softball event with Newsome’s on Saturday, June 24th? Team Greg Newsome will battle against team Denzel Ward with many famous athletes and celebrities on both teams.

The game will be played in East Lake at Class Auto Group Park; tickets can be found at www.gregnewsomesoftball.com. It is sure to be a fun day of competition with a home run derby taking place before the game. Let’s take a look at who will be in attendance at this year’s game.

Donovan Mitchell includes Draymond Green in his list of top-five defenders in the NBA

When revealing his top-five defenders in the NBA, Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell included a member of the Warriors.

Draymond Green recently received high praise from one of the league’s top guards.

In a recent interview on Theo Pinson’s “Run Your Race” podcast, All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell was asked to list off his top-five defenders in the NBA.

In no order, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard named Milwaukee’s Jrue Holiday, Oklahoma City’s Lugentz Dort, Toronto’s OG Anunoby, Miami’s Bam Adebayo. When naming his final spot in the top five, Mitchell mentioned both Boston’s Marcus Smart and Golden State’s Green.

Via @TidalLeague on Twitter:

Green’s resume of defensive accolades includes some of the league’s highest honors. Following the 2016-17 season, Green was named Defensive Player of the Year. The Golden State forward has also been named to the NBA’s All-Defensive team eight different times in his career. In his 10th season, Green was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive second team for the 2022-23 campaign.

Dating back to 2021, Mitchell has only scored over 25 points twice in his last five games against the Warriors. During that span, Mitchell is averaging 22.6 points per game against the Warriors. On his way to an All-Star campaign during the 2022-23 season, Mitchell averaged 28.3 points on 48.4% shooting from the field.

Listen to more of Mitchell’s appearance on Run Your Race with Pinson and AJ Richardson via YouTube.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! 

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Kings’ Keegan Murray reacts to setting NBA rookie 3-point record

On a night in which the Kings clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2006, Murray also made some history, too.

On a night the Sacramento Kings clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2006, rookie Keegan Murray made some history, too.

Malik Monk produced a team-high 19 points, six rebounds and six assists to lead the Kings to the 120-80 victory on the road over the Portland Trail Blazers. De’Aaron Fox added 18 points and Kevin Huerter had 17 points.

Murray produced 13 points, five rebounds and one assist; he hit three 3s. With the performance, Murray surpassed Donovan Mitchell for the most 3-pointers by a rookie in a single season in NBA history.

He stands alone at the top of the list with 188 3s.

“It was just a lot of time in the gym with my dad and my brother,” Murray told Mark Jones of NBC Sports California. “I think it just exemplifies what those two have brought to me in my life, and I am just excited that they can be a part of this.”

Mitchell broke the previous rookie 3-point record of 185 (set by Damian Lillard) during the 2017-18 season with the Utah Jazz. He averaged 20.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals in 79 games on 34% shooting from 3-point range that season.

He passed Lillard in his 78th game to set the record on April 10, 2018.

Murray entered the evening needing just three 3-pointers to set the record, and the fourth pick crossed that mark with 6 minutes and 44 seconds left in the third quarter. Upon hitting it, Murray let out a small grin as the Kings’ bench erupted to celebrate the accomplishment.

Kings coach Mike Brown was happy for Murray after the game.

Breaking any type of record at the highest level in anything you do is absolutely amazing and to see Keegan do that tonight with the way he has played all year and how hard he has worked was an amazing feat. You don’t take that for granted. That is hard to do when you’re talking about something in the history of something. That is an amazing, amazing job that he has done.

Murray has been on a record-setting pace all season.

The fourth pick set the franchise record for 3s by a rookie after surpassing Bogdan Bogdanovic’s mark of 129 last month. Earlier in the season, Murray drained a 3 in 32 straight games from Nov. 25-Jan. 30, which matched the third-longest streak by a rookie in history. He passed Mitchell playing in his 74th game on Wednesday and did so with the highest percentage (40.7) ever by a rookie with at least 400 attempts.

Said Brown:

He should be applauded for many years, hopefully. He is not done with it yet. I’m just so proud of him. You’re excited for his family, friends and teammates. It is phenomenal. Hopefully, he is in the record books for the next 100 years or more because it is an amazing job watching him break that record from a phenomenal player that held it for as many years as he had. I can’t say enough about him and how deserving he is of it.

The Kings (46-30) snapped a 16-season playoff drought with the win, the longest streak in the history of the NBA and the longest active skid of any of the four major sports leagues in the United States.

It will be their 30th playoff appearance in team history.

“It is the effort the front office has put in throughout the years,” Murray said. “We’ve had really good teams, I think, throughout that 17 years and this one just exemplifies all of them. It is really cool to be on this team. We’re all excited but we all know we have a lot more to do.”

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Jalen Green delivers in matchup with Evan Mobley, Cavaliers, but Rockets lack help

With 30 points on elite efficiency, Jalen Green did his part in a battle with fellow second-year prospect Evan Mobley in Cleveland. The #Rockets supporting cast, however, was underwhelming.

Jalen Green and the Houston Rockets lost the war in Sunday’s 108-91 road loss (box score) to the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the No. 2 pick from the 2021 NBA draft may have won a battle.

In a matchup with Evan Mobley, who was selected right after Green at No. 3 in the 2021 first round, Green was outstanding with 30 points and 4 assists on 10-of-17 shooting (58.8%), including 5-of-11 on 3-pointers (45.5%). Mobley held his own with 19 points (66.7% FG), 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks, but Houston’s 21-year-old certainly did enough to make his higher selection defensible.

Ultimately, as has been the case for the 2022-23 season as a whole, the difference in the result was largely based on the supporting cast for each second-year prospect. Big man Jarrett Allen led the Cavaliers (48-28) with 24 points (72.7% FG) and 14 rebounds, while All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell added 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting (50%), including 4-of-9 on 3-pointers (44.4%).

Other than Green, it was a struggle for Houston (18-57), as is often been the case. Backcourt mate Kevin Porter Jr. struggled in his return to Cleveland, scoring just 6 points on 3-of-12 shooting (25%). Alperen Sengun had 14 points (50% FG) and 8 rebounds.

Outside of Green’s five 3-pointers, the rest of the Rockets shot 1-of-14 (7.1%) from beyond the arc, combined.

Next up for Houston on its road trip against probable 2023 playoff teams is Monday’s game at New York. In what will be the team’s final back-to-back of the 2022-23 season, tipoff against the Knicks is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Central. Until then, here’s a look at highlights, postgame interviews, and reaction by Houston fans and media members after Sunday’s loss in Cleveland.

Donovan Mitchell hilariously thought Keegan Murray was still in college

Mitchell hilariously confused Keegan Murray with his twin brother, Kris, watching the Hawkeyes on Thursday.

With the NCAA Tournament in full swing, the collective basketball community is getting a crash course on some of the top players and teams in the country on the biggest stage in the game.

That includes Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell.

The All-Star caught the first-round matchup between the (8) Iowa Hawkeyes and (9) Auburn Tigers on Thursday night and hilariously thought he saw a familiar face: Keegan Murray.

Except, of course, that wasn’t him.

Mitchell shared his discovery with his 1.4 million followers on Twitter and was quickly reminded that he saw Keegan’s twin brother, Kris, on the court with the Hawkeyes. He followed up on his original tweet and corrected himself.

The two brothers played together last season in Iowa City and helped the Hawkeyes advance to the NCAA Tournament. Keegan left the team and became the fourth pick by the Sacramento Kings while Kris opted to stay one more season.

Unfortunately, the Hawkeyes were bounced early from the tournament.

The team lost in the first round for the second straight year, falling to Auburn, 83-75, on Thursday. Kris neared a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds in the loss, capping a career year that will likely be his last in school.

Kris was named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press after averaging 20.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, two assists and one steal in 29 games. He was the only Division I player to average 20 points, 7.5 rebounds and one block with 60 3-pointers this season.

He is projected to be a first-round pick this year. He shares many of the same abilities Keegan has and projects to be an impact player at the next level. With Keegan having a strong rookie year, teams will likely be curious to see if Kris can duplicate that success.

In any case: Mitchell will soon have to face another Murray in the NBA.

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2022-23 NBA MVP Ladder, Vol. 7: Nikola Jokic is creating separation but it’s still a race at the top

The top contenders have a month to close the gap on Jokic.

Welcome back to another NBA MVP ladder.

This is our first since the All-Star break, and things are shaping up for a very familiar race at the top.

Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid have separated themselves as the clear favorites. And while the betting odds suggest the race nearly over, I think it’s tighter than people want to believe. A month is a lot of time for things to change.

Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry drop off this ladder from last month’s Vol. 6 due to limited playing time (and a trade in KD’s case), which creates room for a couple newcomers. Let’s get into that and more.

Odds from BetMGM