The Los Angeles Lakers will be among the frontrunners to trade for five-time All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell if the Cleveland Cavaliers make him available, according to The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd
“If Mitchell doesn’t sign an extension with Cleveland this summer, the Cavs will have to explore trade options—and one of the teams standing at the front of the line will be the Lakers. It’s possible, given Mitchell’s current condition with his calf, that he has already played his final game in a Cavs jersey,” Lloyd wrote on May 14.
Lloyd added that “it’s possible, given Mitchell’s current condition with his calf, that he has already played his final game in a Cavs jersey.”
Mitchell sat out Monday night’s Game 4 with a calf strain and watched helplessly from the bench as the Boston Celtics took a commanding 3-1 series lead in their Eastern Conference semifinals. It will be a miracle if he plays in Boston in Game 5 facing elimination.
Mitchell is eligible to sign a four-year extension worth roughly $200 million this summer.
He was non-committal when he was asked in March.
If he does not sign it, the Cavaliers will be in a tough spot. Mitchell would enter the final guaranteed year of his existing five-year, $163 million deal. He has a $37 million player option for the 2025-26 season that he’s not expected to pick up.
