Trade Talk: Mitchell vs. Sexton + Markkanan + Draft Picks

Cleveland Cavaliars get	Utah Jazz get
Donovan Mitchell	Lauri Markkanen
	Collin Sexton
	Ochai Agbaji (?)
	3 first-round picks
	2 pick swaps (?)

All things considered this wasn't a bad trade, and what I mean by that is two things really.  One is that it became increasingly obvious that the Jazz wanted to move on past Donovan Mitchell, and I guess in that case, the sooner the better.  And second, after they got such a big draft haul for Rudy Gobert, in addition to expecting to be garbage for the next couple of years, then their draft future looks really bright.  And Utah has a pretty good draft history.  So maybe five years from now, they'll be like the team to beat or whatever.

Awhile ago I got to pointing out, using Lebron's teams as an example, how building a roster out of aged all-stars isn't the best strategy when it comes to professional athletics.  Sometimes I feel like some braintrusts, like the Pistons, got a wind of that philosophy and like went running with it.  But in all my years of following the NBA, I only remember two youth movements that made it to the Finals.  One was the Shaq + Penny Magic, and the other was the Durant + Westbrook + Harden Thunder.  So making such a move is far from a surefire strategy.  But maybe it's like a older dude chasing a younger girl, like sometimes, instead of proven experience and backtalk, what you rather prefer is someone who's malleable.

And in reality, it ain't like either Collin Sexton or Lauri Markkanen are slouches.  Sexton is known as being a chuck, and I never heard anyone speak highly of his defense.  Well at the same time, pundits have been recently saying that Mitchell also doesn't defend well, though he does appear to be a player who possesses more of the ability to will his team to a win (unlike Sexton).

Meanwhile, I have to be perfectly honest and just say flatout that I don't feel good about the Cavs losing Markannen.  Before the trade, they had what I would call the best balance of any NBA team between quality guards and bigmen.  Now, that balance has been kinda fucked up, unless one of two things happen.  One would be Kevin Love having another renaissance year and even proving to be a starter if need be, neither of which I'm banking on.  And the other would be Evan Mobley proving himself as like an indisputable all-star.  I'm a Mobley fan, and the first time I saw him play thought he may be like the second coming of Kareem.  But the last time I saw him he was playing like a 7-foot 2guard, which is the last thing the Cavs need, especially now with Mitchell around.

What I'm expecting this team to do is rely heavily on three-guard lineups.  The Cavs still have the deepest guard core, but oddly enough the x-factor may be the likes of Ricky Rubio and Raul Neto.  Why?  Because this team probably isn't going to get too far with players like Garland and Mitchell, both of whom have chucking issues, running the point.  That's the problem with losing Markkanen, that now they have one less, really-tall and reliable jump shooter.

But still, this squad has too much scoring depth to put control in the hands of a player who's reluctant to pass.  That's what I believe kinda did them in last season, once Rubio got hurt.  But like, you never know.  One of the problems with the Jazz during the Mitchell + Gobert era was supposed to be lack of support scoring.  But now, Donovan should have more than enough teammates to pass to, in addition to Jarrett Allen, whose style is like similar to Rudy's.  So, it's like good luck to whoever's coaching them, as what I'm kinda perceiving is that it's going to come down to a power struggle between Garland and Mitchell, and eventually, one of them may have to go.

CONCLUSION

This was a shrewd move by the Cavs, but I'm not jumping on the bandwagon of calling them contenders just yet.  The way I see it, they're just an injury or two away from falling off just like season.  And maybe you're saying to yourself, 'yes, but that's true about every team'.  But in this case, I would say the some of the role players may even be more important to moving this team forward than the stars.  In other words, they'll need someone on the court to stabilize them from going like buckwild with Mitchell, Garland and Mobley and even the likes of Love as their main scoring options.  They'll be able to outrun some teams, but not all of them.

Meanwhile, as for Utah, it's like they know what they're doing.  They're supposed to be after some young dude(s) who is coming into the NBA in the next season or two and is a 'surefire prospect', you know, like Markelle Fultz, Zion Williamson or the perennially-injured AD.  I was watching this documentary once where I believe Teddy Atlas was saying that 'boxing is always looking for the next big thing'.  And, the NBA has become a lot like that also.  But to me, unless you're talking about a Shaq or LBJ, I'm not really interested in those 'next big thing' predictions, especially for dudes who like haven't even proven themselves in college (or the G-League or whatever these days).  But at some point, I guess the Jazz had to pull the trigger and initiate a rebuild.