CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The entire summer, the Cavs have been in pursuit of keeping Donovan Mitchell in Cleveland for the future.
On Sunday, the expectation became a reality as the team officially announced the signing of the All-Star guard to a multi-year contract extension. Sources tell cleveland.com that Mitchell has agreed to a three-year, $150.3 million extension that includes a player option for the 2027-28 season.
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After the Cavs lost in the Eastern Conference semifinals to the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics and fired coach J.B. Bickerstaff shortly after, there have been three main topics on the minds of the front office: Find a new coach; extend Mitchell’s contract; and extend Evan Mobley’s contract.
Two of the three tasks have been officially completed, with Kenny Atkinson taking the helm as the next head coach and Mitchell’s extension announced Sunday afternoon.
“Signing Donovan Mitchell to an extension serves as a pivotal moment for our franchise and reinforces our vision and goals for sustainable success,” said president of basketball operations Koby Altman in a statement. “Donovan is one of the most dynamic All-NBA players in the league, and we couldn’t be more excited that he chose Cleveland and this community to continue his basketball journey.”
Since joining the Cavaliers prior to the 2022-23 season, Mitchell is averaging 27.5 points, 5.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.62 steals in 35.6 minutes over two seasons in Cleveland. His 27.5 points per game average in Cleveland ranks as the highest scoring average in Cavaliers franchise history.
The seventh-year guard joined LeBron James as the only players in franchise history to finish a season averaging at least 25.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists and post multiple seasons averaging at least 26.0 points.
The news of Mitchell’s extension was a matter of when rather than if after the guard took to social media to state that he would be returning to Cleveland. When the official announcement was made on Sunday, Mitchell tweeted, “Never A Doubt.”
It comes as no surprise that the official release from the Cavs and Altman comes on the day after the Cavs added Johnnie Bryant as an associate head coach under Atkinson, sources told cleveland.com.
Bryant and Mitchell created a strong relationship during their time together in Utah from 2017-2020. Mitchell has continuously credited Bryant for his success throughout his career. Bryant also interviewed for the head coaching gig that Atkinson ultimately won. Bryant spent the past four years with the Knicks and the previous six in Utah.
This has been a recent trend for the Cavs’ coaching hires, as this is the third consecutive coaching search in which the Cavs hired one of the prospective candidates as an assistant. When the Cavs have needed an in-season replacement, they have almost immediately gone to that previous candidate. Bickerstaff replaced John Beilein. Ty Lue replaced David Blatt.
While the move to hire Bryant as an associate head coach could be a backup option if things don’t work out with Atkinson, the Cavs could also be making a play to keep Mitchell happy and with the organization for the remainder of his career.
Mitchell’s new contract allows him to possibly accrue 10 years of service before hitting free agency — a financial decision that sets him up to earn a five-year extension worth more than $380 million in 2027.
Mitchell has been busy this offseason, releasing the DON Issue 6 ‘Camp’ — the next line of his lucrative shoe deal with Adidas, and hosting the first ever “Spida Elite” camp in Los Angeles, among various Instagram lives. Most importantly, the star has been helping piece together the Cavs from afar.
Last offseason, Mitchell was heavily involved in recruiting free agent additions Max Strus, Georges Niang, and Ty Jerome. Mitchell also organized multiple player-led workouts. This year is a similar story as Altman admitted that Mitchell would once again have a substantial role in the organization’s decision-making. He had conversations with multiple head coaching candidates and gave the approval of Atkinson, sources told cleveland.com.
Atkinson and Mobley were both in attendance at Mitchell’s camp in Los Angeles for the top high school recruits. It was a chance for all three of them to connect and create a plan for the coming season and potentially years to come. A sit down in Los Angeles with Atkinson, Altman, and Mitchell was when the star had officially told them that he’d be extending his tenure with the organization. sources told cleveland.com.
The last domino to fall this offseason for the Cavs, in a rather quiet free agency, is the extension of Mobley. With the tandem of Mitchell and Mobley surrounded by role players, the team reached the Eastern Conference semifinals for the first time without LeBron James since 1993, and the organization believes that this roster can challenge in the East.
“We want to align ourselves with the best teams in the NBA and ultimately compete for Championships, and we feel securing Donovan long-term provides us that opportunity,” Altman said.
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