Donovan Mitchell was one of the most prominent stars featured in trade speculation this summer. He was viewed as the face of the Utah Jazz and proved that he could produce at a high level when asked to be the focal point of a team’s offense. Mitchell averaged 25.9 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 5.3 APG for the Jazz last season.
It was recently revealed that Donovan Mitchell was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers by the Utah Jazz. The full package included Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, Lauri Markkanen, three unprotected first-round picks, and two pick swaps.
Stephen A. Smith Blasts New York Knicks For Missing Out On Donovan Mitchell Trade
The New York Knicks were viewed as one of the favorites to land Donovan Mitchell this summer, but it’s clear they could not get a deal done. NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith has recently blasted the New York Knicks for missing out on Donovan Mitchell, claiming that “nothing ever gets done” on the Knicks.
These are the F$&@ Knicks! This is what always happens! pic.twitter.com/F7HShDVpOS
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) September 1, 2022
You see what I’m saying? Every single time… something goes wrong… You got about 7 or 8 first-round picks, you got RJ Barrett, you got Julius Randle, you got Toppin, you got Immanuel Quickley. And you still couldn’t get Donovan Mitchell. You still couldn’t get him.
Once again we’re going to go into another season, and the New York Knicks are still devoid of a star. They’re somewhere other than in a New York Knicks uniform… They make me sick. Nothing ever gets done in New York with the Knicks. Nothing.
It just never ends with the Knicks. It just never freaking ends.
It was previously reported that the New York Knicks’ pursuit of Donovan Mitchell got complicated due to them signing RJ Barrett to a rookie extension. While they could have potentially acquired him anyway, it is clear that their package was no longer the best due to the Jazz valuing RJ Barrett.
Nevertheless, the Jazz greatly valued Barrett as part of any Mitchell deal with New York, and a deal without him would require the Knicks to relinquish far more draft assets than they’ve shown a willingness to do, sources said.
Once the Knicks committed to Barrett’s extension, management became resigned to the fact that there’s a much more difficult path to an offseason deal to acquire Mitchell.
Hopefully, missing out on Donovan Mitchell won’t hurt the New York Knicks in the future. He is a true star shooting guard, and he could have been a good building block for the team.
That said, the New York Knicks are clearly in a good position for the future. They still have good young players on the roster and signed breakout point guard Jalen Brunson to a deal this summer. Perhaps we will see them become a consistent playoff team in the coming years, and if some of their players improve, they could make the playoffs within the next two seasons.
