Donovan Mitchell
Donovan Mitchell is a Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star guard and elite scorer who starred in Utah before a 2022 trade reshaped the franchise's future.
Donovan Mitchell is a Cleveland Cavaliers guard and one of the most productive perimeter scorers of his era, a compact, explosive shot-maker who became a seven-time All-Star before his 30th birthday. A 13th overall pick in 2017 who grew into a star in Utah, he was traded to Cleveland in 2022 and turned the Cavaliers into a perennial Eastern Conference power, culminating in a franchise-shaping extension in the summer of 2026. His career sits at the intersection of two franchises that count him among their best modern players.
| Vitals | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 7, 1996 (Elmsford, New York) |
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Teams | Utah Jazz (2017-2022), Cleveland Cavaliers (2022-present) |
| Draft | 2017, 1st round, 13th overall (Denver Nuggets; rights traded to Utah) |
| Contract | As of November 2, 2026, signed through 2030-31 on a four-year extension reported at about $273 million |
| Number | 45 |
Louisville and the draft
The college grounding. Mitchell played two seasons at Louisville, arriving as a reserve and leaving as a first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection. As a sophomore in 2016-17 he averaged 15.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists while showing the two-way energy that would define his pro game, and he declared for the draft after that breakout year.
Draft night. The Denver Nuggets selected Mitchell 13th overall in 2017 and immediately traded his rights to the Utah Jazz for forward Trey Lyles and the 24th pick. It became one of the defining draft-night deals of the decade, as the player taken near the back of the lottery turned into a franchise cornerstone.
The Utah years
The arrival. Mitchell was a rookie sensation, averaging 20.5 points per game in 2017-18, earning All-Rookie First Team honors and winning the 2018 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. He led the Jazz to the playoffs as a rookie and established himself as the engine of a hard-nosed Utah team built around him and center Rudy Gobert.
The playoff eruption. His signature Utah moment came on August 17, 2020, when he poured in 57 points in a playoff opener against Denver inside the Orlando bubble, the third-highest-scoring game in NBA playoff history behind only Michael Jordan and Elgin Baylor. By the end of his Utah run he had made five straight playoff appearances and ranked second in franchise history in made three-pointers.
The crossroads. Mitchell’s scoring climbed each season in Utah, peaking at 25.9 points per game in 2021-22, but repeated early playoff exits and a roster teardown set the stage for a departure. When the Jazz committed to a rebuild, he became the most coveted trade asset on the market.
The trade to Cleveland
The deal. In September 2022 the Cavaliers acquired Mitchell from Utah in a blockbuster, sending out Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, three first-round picks and two pick swaps. It was a franchise-altering gamble by Cleveland, which paired Mitchell with young guard Darius Garland to build a backcourt meant to contend immediately.
The instant payoff. Mitchell responded with the best scoring season of his career to that point, averaging 28.3 points per game in 2022-23 and earning All-NBA honors. The signature night came on January 2, 2023, when he scored a franchise-record 71 points in an overtime win over the Chicago Bulls, the highest-scoring NBA game in nearly two decades.
The Cavaliers peak
The 64-win season. Cleveland’s climb peaked in 2024-25, when the Cavaliers finished 64-18 for the best record in the Eastern Conference. Mitchell led the team at 24.0 points per game, made his sixth straight All-Star appearance and was named to the All-NBA First Team for the first time in his career.
The deeper run. In 2025-26 Mitchell averaged 27.9 points per game and pushed the Cavaliers to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in his Cleveland tenure, another All-NBA season that cemented his place among the league’s top guards.
The commitment. He backed his play with security, signing a three-year extension worth about $150 million in July 2024 and then a new four-year extension reported at roughly $273 million in July 2026 that runs through 2030-31. The deal ranked among the richest in the sport by average annual value and tied his prime firmly to Cleveland.
By the numbers
| Season | GP | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | FG% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-18 | 79 | 20.5 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 1.5 | .437 |
| 2018-19 | 77 | 23.8 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 1.4 | .432 |
| 2019-20 | 69 | 24.0 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 1.0 | .449 |
| 2020-21 | 53 | 26.4 | 4.4 | 5.2 | 1.0 | .438 |
| 2021-22 | 67 | 25.9 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 1.5 | .448 |
| 2022-23 | 68 | 28.3 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 1.5 | .484 |
| 2023-24 | 55 | 26.6 | 5.1 | 6.1 | 1.8 | .462 |
| 2024-25 | 71 | 24.0 | 4.5 | 5.0 | 1.3 | .443 |
| 2025-26 | 70 | 27.9 | 4.5 | 5.7 | 1.5 | .483 |
| 2026-27 | 6 | 22.7 | 5.3 | 4.5 | 1.3 | .489 |
Per Basketball-Reference, through Nov. 2, 2026; the 2026-27 line is a partial season.
Career totals
Per Basketball-Reference, through Nov. 2, 2026.
Ranks
- 1st Points in a game, Cavaliers franchise history (71)
- 3rd Points in a game, NBA playoff history (57)
- 2nd Three-pointers made, Jazz franchise history (958)
- 4th Three-pointers made, Cavaliers franchise history
Per NBA.com and Land of Basketball franchise leaderboards, through Oct. 29, 2026.
Honors
- 7× NBA All-Star (2020-2026)
- All-NBA First Team (2025); 3× All-NBA (2023, 2025, 2026)
- 2018 NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion
- NBA All-Rookie First Team (2018)
- First-team All-ACC, Louisville (2017)
Per Basketball-Reference, through Nov. 2, 2026.
The arguments
The playoff question. For much of his career Mitchell drew scrutiny over postseason results. Critics in the national media pointed to a string of early exits in Utah and Cleveland and asked whether a 6-foot-2 scorer could anchor a true title contender. Defenders counter that the 2025-26 Conference Finals run, achieved amid roster turnover and injuries around him, answered the central doubt about his ceiling as a lead guard.
Who won the trade. The 2022 deal remains a reference point for two franchises. Observers sympathetic to Utah note that Markkanen blossomed into an All-Star and that the Jazz banked a trove of draft capital for a rebuild. Those crediting Cleveland argue the Cavaliers acquired a top-tier scorer in his prime and immediately became a 60-win team, a near-impossible bar for any single traded prospect to clear.
The backcourt fit. Analysts have long debated the pairing of Mitchell and Garland, two score-first guards without prototypical size. Skeptics question the defensive trade-offs of a small backcourt against elite playoff wings; supporters point to Cleveland’s regular-season dominance as evidence the offensive firepower outweighs the concern.
Why it matters
Mitchell is the rare scorer who has carried the weight of two franchises’ expectations, a lottery afterthought who became Utah’s all-time three-point mainstay and then the centerpiece of Cleveland’s return to contention. His combination of volume, efficiency and durability places him among the defining guards of his generation, and his long-term commitment to the Cavaliers makes his story the throughline of the franchise’s post-LeBron era.
