(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Cavaliers are no longer in championship contention.
Although, looking at the bigger picture, they were never a true contender, even if they were a playoff team.
The Cavs’ roster was flawed and hampered by their lack of depth behind their starting five, not to mention the fact that two of their franchise players failed to take a step forward in their development.
However, it seems like there was even more to their postseason shortcomings.
According to a report by Cavs beat writer Chris Fedor, Donovan Mitchell grew frustrated with his teammates’ “lack of maturity, focus, playoff-readiness, and willingness to listen” (via NBACentral).
Donovan Mitchell grew frustrated with some teammates’ lack of maturity, focus, playoff-level readiness and a willingness to listen, per @ChrisFedor
(Via https://t.co/ruhuxpSrVI) pic.twitter.com/xivMsjGX5O
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 16, 2024
Mitchell is a born leader and a stout competitor, and he often takes his game up a notch in the postseason, so this clearly matters a lot to him.
This doesn’t bode well for his future with the organization.
Mitchell has refused to commit to the team for the long run, and if he didn’t sign a contract extension before, it’s hard to think that he’ll have any interest in doing so now.
He’s still under contract for the next two seasons, but the Cavs might be forced to trade him now if they don’t feel like he’s going to sign an extension.
At least, he’s going to be worth a significant haul, so they will be able to either surround their current stars with other win-now players or build for the future, which might be the smartest thing to do if they’re not sold on Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.
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