After Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell was the biggest name on the trade block during the 2022 NBA offseason. The former Utah Jazz All-Star tried to take the team to the promised land repeatedly, but he could never get the job done. Ultimately, Danny Ainge decided to blow things up and split Mitchell and Rudy Gobert this summer.
Many teams were linked with a move for Spida, with the New York Knicks looking like clear favorites to acquire his services. Every week, new rumors surfaced about Mitchell going to the Big Apple, but that never came to fruition.
Other teams joined Mitchell’s sweepstakes, including the Brooklyn Nets, but they didn’t have luck in their quest for Mitchell’s talents. Another team interested in him was the Miami Heat, and according to the player, he thought he’d go to South Beach.
Donovan Mitchell Was Convinced He Would Join Miami Heat
During his appearance on JJ Redick’s “The Old Man and the Three” show, Mitchell opened up about his summer and what went through his mind during those moments. The young shooting guard admitted that he thought he would join the Heat (33:40).
“D.G.,” Mitchell said. “But we didn’t know any of this was happening. So we would be working out, and I said this to somebody, I was like, man I’m working out Bam and others and I’m thinking like, ‘This is just preparing. This is what it’s going to look like.’ And D.G. is right here.”
Mitchell revealed he had shortlisted three teams that could make a move for him, adding one squad that perhaps nobody had in mind at that point.
“Miami, New York, where else?” Mitchell said. “Maybe Washington. Those were the three in my head that I thought, ‘Okay, if anything were to happen, it would probably be on that side.’”
In the end, the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled the trigger on this move and secured Mitchell, who took the level of this team to a different dimension. They are expected to be a top team in the East, and we can’t wait to see what that young and talented team brings to the table in a season where the spot in the Finals will be up for grabs.
