Is Donovan Mitchell the next Jaylen Brown?

Summary

The Athletic NBA Daily – “Is Donovan Mitchell the next Jaylen Brown?”

Date: July 8, 2026
Hosts: Dave DuFour & Esfandiar (S) Baraheni

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Episode Overview

This punchy episode of The Athletic NBA Daily explores several of the day’s main NBA storylines, centering on Donovan Mitchell’s massive contract extension and how it compares to Jalen Brown’s controversial deal, what the latest CBA environment means for star retention and team building, and the resonance of loyalty in the league, using Kyle Lowry’s Toronto Raptors legacy as another lens. Also featured: early takes from Summer League (who is already a future All-Star?), DeMar DeRozan’s free agency, and ripple effects of salary cap changes for teams across the NBA.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Summer League Standouts & Hot Takes

[00:21–06:31]

• Utah Jazz Playoff Hopes

  • S: “The Utah Jazz are going to be a playoff team. Darren Peterson is like ready to go. He moves like he’s been in the NBA for 10 years already. The way that he’s able to switch directions, create his own shot, all of that is so exciting.” (01:08–02:16)
  • Peterson’s “pull-up three looks great,” and he “kind of is in control of the game.” (Dave, 02:43)

• Cam Boozer & Summer League Talent

  • Immediate foundational value, “dribble handoff stuff that they can run” with Cedric Coward (S, 03:33)
  • “These guys are already too good for the summer league. That’s why this draft was highly touted.” (S, 03:49)
  • The DeBonsa vs. Peterson matchup is “must-watch” – biggest Summer League game so far. (Dave, 04:24–04:39)

• Darius Acuff (Kings) & Rookie of the Year Race

  • “He’s going to be given the keys… 29 shots. I would like to see more of that at the NBA level too.” (S, 05:37)
  • “Sign me up… he absolutely has a chance to be rookie of the year.” (05:29–05:37)
  • Also, Cam Carr (Lakers) “Clearly going to be a 3-and-D guy to start out, but they need that… Maybe he gets some playing time next year.” (S, 06:11)

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2. Kyle Lowry Retires as a Raptor: Who’s Toronto’s GOAT?

[06:31–11:26]

• The Lowry Ceremony

  • “Hats off to the Raptors. They know how to throw an event and honor their greats… For a lot of people, including myself, he’s the greatest Raptor of all time.” (S, 06:46)

• Comparing Lowry’s Legacy to DeMar DeRozan and Others

  • S makes the case: Lowry’s underdog journey, city embrace, transformative leadership, and “storybook” championship run surpass what DeRozan or past Toronto stars (Vince, Kawhi) gave. (08:00–09:21)
    • “Kyle had the perfect arc: came in underrated, took on the city’s mentality, won a championship, left on good terms.”
  • DeRozan’s potential return: “If it’s a veteran minimum… he fits. But would he accept that role? He's chasing top 10 all-time scoring.” (09:30–10:24)

• Possible DeRozan Destinations

  • Dave: “Miami is the most likely. He’d probably be the second-most productive offensive player [for the Heat].” (10:55–11:10)
  • “You could see a world where DeMar starts [for Miami].” (S, 11:17)

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3. Donovan Mitchell’s $273M Extension – “Jaylen Brown 2.0”?

[15:19–29:03]

• Contract Details & Parallels with Jaylen Brown

  • “Four years, $273 million, through 2030–2031. That feels like a lot of money considering we just spent a week talking about how Jalen Brown made too much money… I’d rather have Jalen Brown.” (Dave, 15:19–16:06)
  • “What’s the money on that last season, S?” “Basically $73 million.” (16:04–16:08)
  • “Are we just looking at a scenario where this is the next contract that gets moved?” (Dave, 16:08)

• CBA & Luxury Tax: Owners’ Excuse?

  • S: “Do you think owners and front offices are using the second apron as a cop out?” (16:33)
  • Dave: “100%. It’s a fake hard cap. They’ve wanted a hard cap for years, and now they have it.” (16:43)

• Team-Building Impacts

  • S: “It also hamstrings team-building… The Cavaliers are the most expensive team in basketball.”
  • “Maybe this is them stuck in a past era where keeping your guys made more sense.” (18:24–19:04)
  • “In this current cap environment, you might get stuck with that contract.” (S, 18:48)

• The Purgatory of “Tier 2” Stars

  • “If you’re not a top 8 or 10 guy and you’re paid like it, you just don’t have a lot of value outside your team.” (Dave, 19:26)
  • “Devin Booker… similar tier… I have him below [Brown/Mitchell].” (21:12–21:20)

• Potential League-wide Effects & Case Studies

  • Pistons hesitating on Jalen Duren, Spurs looking at hard choices with their young core, OKC expecting to move Lu Dort – “These contracts, when they’re coming, they’re scheduled; you have to make the moves.” (22:01–23:24)

• The “Condensed Middle Class” Problem

  • S: “The CBA is ruining things for players in the middle...you’re seeing lower-level players get bigger contracts, top-tiers get condensed, but those next 35 to 85 get squeezed.” (23:31–24:40)
  • Dave: “This new CBA, to Kuzma’s credit, is hurting a lot of players in the middle class. But for me, I think it’s hurting the fans. Jalen Brown being traded is the worst for fans – nobody wants to root for laundry.” (24:46–25:21)

• Will There Be a Drafted Superstar Loophole?

  • “There should be a clause… if you draft a player… there should be an incentive to keeping that player. If that 35% max counted as 25% to the cap, then we probably don’t have to make this [Jalen Brown] decision.”
    (S & Dave, 25:23–25:51)

• Lasting Fan Loyalty and Player Tenure

  • “If you can’t have franchises with iconic players who stay their full career, you lose a lot.” (Dave, 27:16)
  • “Kyle Lowry… was able to stay because the Raptors got him on friendlier contracts. It worked out.” (S, 27:45)
  • “Owners are hoping guys take less to make it work… But I don’t know if that’s the recipe either.” (28:04–28:11)

• Is Mitchell The Next Trade Domino?

  • “Is Donovan Mitchell traded next summer?” (Dave, 28:43)
  • “If they flame out… I could see them trading him next summer. But, good luck: It’s a huge contract.” (S, 28:45–29:03)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Darren Peterson’s Readiness:
  S, 01:16:
  “Darren Peterson is like ready to go…He moves like he’s been in the NBA for 10 years already… All of that is so exciting if you’re a Utah Jazz fan.”

• On How the CBA Changes Team-Building:
  Dave, 16:43:
  “It’s a fake hard cap. They’ve wanted a hard cap for years and now they’ve created it.”

• On Kyle Lowry’s Legacy:
  S, 09:01:
  “Kyle had kind of like the perfect arc for a greatest of all time: came in underrated, took on the city’s mentality, built it up, won a championship, reaffirmed his place among the best, and left on their terms.”

• On “Condensing” of the NBA Middle Class:
  S, 23:31:
  “You’re seeing lower-level players get bigger contracts, and even that crème de la crème… but those next 35 to 85 guys get condensed, right, to a small tier.”

• On the Fan Impact:
  Dave, 25:21:
  “For me, I just think that it’s hurting the fans. The more that this stuff drives decisions like Jalen Brown being traded away from the Celtics, the worse it is for the fans. I don’t think anybody wants to just root for laundry.”

• On the Future of Star Retention:
  Dave, 25:51:
  “That to me seems at least sensible, especially for guys you draft. The Cavs can’t do that with Donovan Mitchell, obviously… but the Warriors should be able to do that with Steph Curry, the Raptors with Scottie Barnes.”

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Key Timestamps

• [01:08] S’s Utah Jazz playoff hot take & enthusiasm about Darren Peterson
• [03:33] On Cam Boozer and instant-impact rookies
• [05:37] Darius Acuff as a “Rookie of the Year” dark horse
• [06:46] Recap of Kyle Lowry’s retirement as a Raptor; why he’s the team’s GOAT
• [09:30] Would DeRozan fit as a Raptor again? Why Miami makes sense
• [15:19] Announcement & breakdown of Donovan Mitchell’s massive Cavs extension
• [16:33] CBA “second apron” and whether owners are using it as a cop-out
• [18:24] How big contracts have changed strategy for mid-market teams
• [19:26] “Tier 2” stars and the value crisis for players like Mitchell, Brown, Booker
• [22:24] Spurs, Pistons, OKC forced into tough salary decisions
• [23:31] How the CBA “condenses” contracts and what it means for role players
• [24:46] “Hurting the fans” with star trades and lack of continuity
• [25:23] The case for extra “drafted star” incentives under a new CBA
• [28:43] Speculation on if/when Mitchell gets traded

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Tone & Takeaways

Lively, informed, a bit irreverent—this episode offers a conversational but smart breakdown of financial pressures in today’s league, why contracts like Donovan Mitchell’s are as much a product of circumstance as talent, and why iconic, loyal “franchise” players are increasingly an endangered species. If you want to understand summer league hype, legacy debates, and labor economics—all through the lens of this week’s biggest NBA stories—this episode is a must-listen.

Transcript

[Dave DeFore]

Good morning and welcome to the NBA Daily for July 8, 2026. I'm Dave DeFore here with Esperahenny. Coming up, Kyle Lowry is retiring as a raptor. Is he the greatest one ever? And Donovan Mitchell signed a new, long, big contract.

[Esperahenny]

Why.

[Dave DeFore]

Good morning, everybody. What is up, S. How's it going, buddy? Ready for summer league?

[Esperahenny]

Yes, absolutely. The wonderful, you know, city of. What do they call. What do they call Vegas again? I forgot what it was called. Sin City. Right, That's.

[Dave DeFore]

I guess.

[Griffin]

Yeah.

[Finn AI Representative]

I don't know.

[Dave DeFore]

I don't gamble, so.

[Esperahenny]

But it's okay. Whatever.

[Griffin]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

We're headed to the desert for the summer league, which will be a lot of fun as it usually is.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah. We're going to be in the house for AJ Debona vs Darren Peterson, which will be Thursday night. We'll. We'll do a show after that. We'll have a lot of stuff coming from summer league because, you know, we'll be there for that whole first weekend and, and so will all of our guys and, and people from the athletic, so. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You got any early hot takes from the California Classic or from Utah?

[Esperahenny]

I'll just, I'll tell you this right now. Maybe not a hot take, just a take that I feel incredibly good about, is that the Utah Jazz are going to be a playoff team.

[Dave DeFore]

Oh, man. What? Darren Peterson is like ready to go. Yeah. He's just. He can play.

[Esperahenny]

He.

[Leesa Mattress Spokesperson]

He.

[Esperahenny]

Like there was so much conversation about his injuries and creatine and his commitment and all that stuff. And maybe that was self inflicted, you know, like, maybe some of that was right. But he is incredible.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah. I think the creatine thing, and I don't know if I've said this on the show, but I do think that that's a little bit of just. I think that he had most likely a condition during training camp and what he was told was not creatine. Like you, you buy it like the health food store. It was. There's a. In your body.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

Well, it's not synthetic, but it's. It's a compound called creatine kinase that, that if those are elevated, it can cause.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, right. Because creatine is something you. You produce yourself.

[Dave DeFore]

So again, but unrelated to taking creatine. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

That also, like, doesn't even matter anymore.

[Dave DeFore]

It does.

[Esperahenny]

Like, none of that matters anymore because he is incredible. He moves like the NBA for 10 years already. The way that he's able to switch directions, create his own shot, all of that is so exciting. If You're a Utah Jazz fan.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

And I mean, like, I, I literally just a week ago, we dropped a video on the Athletics saying that the Utah Jazz are the next young team. It's partially because of Darren Peterson and how incredible he might be.

[Dave DeFore]

Well, they're not even really that young. Let's, let's be honest. I mean, they, they're sort of young, but like Lowry Markkanen's been in the league for a while. Jaren Jackson was defensive player of the year. Yeah. Nurkic is gonna, I guess, be the starting center on a lot of nights. I guess when they need to play, play bigger. But man, Darren Peterson, to have a guy like that, his pace is what I've been really impressed with to, to, you know, in this summer league stuff, which I know, look, it's summer league. We'll take it all with a grain of salt. But he looks like he, he's kind of in control of the game. The pull up three looks great. Caught a little bit of that him and against the Grizzlies. So Sausage Cam Boozer, who also, I mean, looks like just day one is going to be ready to play. Yeah. And I think he'll probably touch the ball a lot because he may be their best passer day one.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, it's. It's actually a lot of fun. Again, I can see the combinations between him and Cedric Coward, like dribble handoff stuff that they can run. And Boozer is such a smart player that I think it'll just immediately be a foundation of their offense. You saw the press conference with Thomas Isolo just like smiling ear to ear about the ideas he has with what he could do with Cam Boozer on the floor. This is, this is how it is. Like, this is why this draft was highly touted because these guys are already too good for the summer league. They're all, they're, they're way above this level of competition. And that's all respect to guys who are trying to earn contracts and everything like that right now, but ultimately these are guys who are going to become all Stars. Right. And I'm, I'm excited to see AJ DeBonsa. Like, I don't want to, you know, there's, there's already conversation of, oh, Darren Peterson should have went first, Cam Boozer.

[Dave DeFore]

Because we like what we just saw. Yeah, right. Like DeBonsa versus Peterson. That'll be Thursday night. That's going to be pretty much a must watch. I mean, it's the biggest game of, of summer league for sure. So it's kind of weird they're doing it the first night. But I guess I'm going to be

[Esperahenny]

on the other side. I'm going to be in Cox Pavilion watching Alan Graves, you know, I mean,

[Dave DeFore]

how about Darius Acuff, man? I, I think that, you know, when you look at what Sacramento's got going on, which is nothing, that guy is a, is a big bright dude.

[Esperahenny]

Also. I don't remember 29 shots.

[Dave DeFore]

No. Great. Summer League's four. Yeah. I want him to take, take 40 in the next game. He kind of reminds me a little bit kind of like Allen Iverson thing happening. So I'm excited to see more of him. I mean, especially again, Sacramento, they just have nothing going on. I wonder, like, you know these guys a little bit better than I do at this point. Like I'm, I'm catching up. Yeah. Is Acuff a guy that, that is. We know he's going to touch the ball. We know he's going to get shots.

[Griffin]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

He's going to score Rookie of the year. Kind of outside looking in.

[Esperahenny]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean especially given the fact that like we just talked about it with Peterson. He's on a team that has guys. Right?

[Leesa Mattress Spokesperson]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Washington has guys, Memphis doesn't. And so maybe Cam Boozer has a chance to win rookie of. But Acuff, like he's going to be given the keys. 29 shots. I would like to see more of that at the NBA level too. Like. Sure, give me, give me 20 shots a game of Darius Acuff. I'd be down. Sign me up. And if you're a Kings fan, you want that too. So I, Yes, I think he absolutely has a chance to be rookie of the year. I also think, you know, in terms of his own pacing and his ability to kind of like get into spots that he wants to. He showed what he had to. You know, I like him a lot. Also. Another shout out. I want to bring up Cam Carr from the Lakers. Just like another wing. Clearly going to be a 3 guy to start out, but they need that and maybe he, he like, he's lots in perfectly to maybe get some playing time next year just because of how desperately they need that position. So I like him. He's a, he's an athlete too. He's going to jump out the gym.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah. Okay. So Kyle Lowry.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

Up in your neck of the woods. He signed a one day deal and they, they retired Kyle Lowry as a Toronto Raptor. You were there. How was the ceremony?

[Esperahenny]

Dude, honestly, hats off to the Raptors. They, they know how to throw an event and honor their greats. They did a great job with Vince Carter a couple years ago and this time they did a great job with Kyle Lowry. Now there's like a jersey ceremony, you know, retiring his jersey. That'll happen at some point next season. But in terms of this moment, it's, it was great. It was really, really well done. Kyle obviously got to kind of go out on his own terms, signing that one day contract and you know, for a lot of people, including myself, he's the greatest Raptor of all time. He kind of has solidified that in a lot of people's books. It was a cool moment and honestly, rightfully so. It was also, if you watch the press conference, it was probably the most opening, candid he's ever been in his career. So you got like the full impact of, of Kyle and, and basically you could ask him any question you wanted and he would have, he would have asked, answered it for you.

[Dave DeFore]

Now, okay, now I want to ask you because you said he's the greatest Raptor ever.

[Griffin]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

Demar Rosen was just released by the Sacramento Kings. I mean, if he's not, if DeMar DeRozan isn't in the mix for greatest

[Esperahenny]

Raptor, I mean, sure, anybody could be in the mix.

[Finn AI Representative]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

I mean, I assume that it like he has, I will say for number one, doesn't he?

[Esperahenny]

I don't think so. No, I don't think so. I'll tell you, this look like you're, you're probably talking to the wrong person because it would telling, you know, an Italian that pasta is not good or something like, I'll just be like, what are you talking about? You know what I mean? But Kyle, his impact on that era of the Raptors, in my opinion, exceeded what, what demar did. And if you look at like storybook endings, out of all of the options you have for the Raptors, whether it's Vince Carter, whether it's Kawhi, whether it's Demar. Kyle had kind of like the perfect arc for a greatest of all time. He came in as this under, underrated guy, underdog. He kind of assumed that mentality that the city already had as a sports culture, took it under its wing, built it up. They obviously had their most successful time there and then won a championship, reaffirmed to the NBA world that he is one of the best guards of his generation and boom, like that. That to me is the perfect arc. They, they ended things when they needed to. It was amicable, it wasn't A bad breakup like Vince Carter or a trade like DeMar DeRozan that was maybe ugly, or Kawhi leaving in free agency. It was on their terms. And I think that actually means a lot when it comes to his greatest of all time case.

[Dave DeFore]

So Demar was sent out in that Kawhi trade.

[Esperahenny]

He was.

[Dave DeFore]

He's free agent. Does he fit? Does he fit with the Raptors? Would they bring him home?

[Esperahenny]

Look, if it's a veteran minimum, which is all the Raptors can currently offer, yes, absolutely, he fits. They could do worse than that on the veteran minimum. Having a guy who can still give you 15 points a night and also, you know, can kind of elevate his game. In moments where Kawhi Leonard is missing time or unavailable during the season, you kind of need someone to slot into that usage. He would make an incredible amount of sense. The question for him, for DeMar and Toronto, is would he be accepting of that role? Because he's not starting. You know, he's likely coming off of the bench. He's not getting that same usage, and he's chasing history. He is. He's like only 1500, 1800 points away from being top 10 all time in scoring. Yeah, I feel like that has to be important to him. You know, I don't think he'll have that opportunity to kind of chase that in Toronto. Maybe he will in Miami. Maybe he will in Cleveland or somewhere.

[Dave DeFore]

Well, maybe Boston. Now, listen, I mean, now that they've made this Jalen Brown trade, like Charleston could be an option. A lot of it, I think, depends on, you know, what kind of money he's looking for. Veteran minimum. Demarta Rosen could. Could play in a lot of places, I mean. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

I mean, yeah, he'd be awesome. Where would you think would make sense? San Antonio would be fun. Do they need Demar?

[Dave DeFore]

Not really. But I mean, if you're getting him for that.

[Esperahenny]

Right.

[Dave DeFore]

Why not have him? I mean, you know, if he's chasing a ring, that'd be a spot to. To maybe go get a ring.

[Esperahenny]

But I. I think Miami is the most likely.

[Dave DeFore]

I think the scoring thing is a good. Is a good point that you. That you made there. Miami, he's going to have the ball in his hands a fair amount. Like he would have a. I mean, he'd probably be the second most productive offensive player that they could put out there, right?

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, he might start sometimes for them. Man, does he start, Matt?

[Dave DeFore]

Probably.

[Esperahenny]

I mean, at this point, Norm Powell is gone. Tim Hardaway is there, obviously. Maybe he slots in but you could see a world where demar starts.

[Dave DeFore]

I could. Wow. That does not again, does not bode well for the Miami all right, guys, we're gonna take a quick break and we're gonna talk about Donovan Mitchell's new contract with the Cavs.

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[Dave DeFore]

Cavaliers and Donovan Mitchell have agreed to a four year, 273 million dollar veteran extension. It's going to run through the 2030, 2031 season. That feels like a lot of money considering we've just spent the last week talking about how Jalen Brown made too much money and that's why the Celtics had to trade him. They're the same age. I, I think Jalen Brown is a better player than Donovan Mitchell. I mean, you know, we're splitting hairs here because they're similar tiered players. I would just. Personally I'd rather have Jalen Brown and, and now we're watching the Cavs lock into this. I mean, what's he going to want it, what's it, what's the money on that? Last season S is $73 million.

[Esperahenny]

It's basically $73 million.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah, yeah.

[Esperahenny]

Something along the lines of that.

[Dave DeFore]

So are we just looking at a scenario where, okay, this, this, this is the next contract that gets or, or whatever. I mean, you know, we watched Brad Stevens and the Celtics, you know, their press conference yesterday where they talked about getting just absolutely hammered by the second apron, the repeater tax and all these things that you can't do and how you can't tie up 70% of your payroll in two players.

[Esperahenny]

Can I ask you a question?

[Dave DeFore]

Crazy contract.

[Esperahenny]

Do you, do you think that owners and or front offices are using the second apron? As a cop out.

[Dave DeFore]

100%. It's a fake hard cap. They've wanted a hard cap for years and now they've created a fake hard cap. 100%. I mean, but I would. But it is a ton of money. I mean, when you're in that repeater tax, especially you know, when you look at the Nugget situation with Peyton Watson and decisions that they have.

[Esperahenny]

I mean, the Thunder and the way they shed salary this year. Right.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah, but with the, with the Nuggets, you know, if they were to waive Jonas Valentunas and sign Peyton Watson to the 25 million a year contract that he's, that he's looking to sign, their tax bill would be like $177 million. I mean, it just. That's an unfeasible amount of money. And I know that the Nuggets are a bad example because they're never going to pay the tax.

[Leesa Mattress Spokesperson]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

But I almost can't blame them to. You know, you can't just double your payroll just to sign one guy.

[Esperahenny]

But for what it's worth, it also hamstrings team building in such a massive way. The right pick freezing if you're a repeat offender and, and the amount of restrictions that you have in terms of out salary, ingoing salary etc and trades, like it really limits your ability to create. So I, I don't, I don't dispute that from a second apron perspective. But at the same time, like the Knicks not willing to pay Mitchell Robinson after just winning a championship and making gajillions of dollars in merchandising, you have some of the merchandising behind you. Like making gajillions of dollars on that to me doesn't make a lot of sense. You know, there are other ways for them to shed salary and I know they're expensive, but you're a championship team. Like this kind of all comes together for me when you talk about Donovan Mitchell. By the way, the Cavaliers, they are the most expensive team in basketball. They just became more expensive.

[Finn AI Representative]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

By extending Donovan Mitchell. Maybe this is, maybe this is them like stuck in a past era of team building where three or four years ago it made more sense to kind of keep your guys. But now it seems like teams are motivated like the Celtics to get off of their books. This is something I've talked about with the Raptors too, where they signed Yaka Pertle to an extension, they signed Emmanuel Quickley to an extension, they signed Brandon Ingram to an extension, thinking that bigger contracts would allow them to make trades. Now they, they did make a trade for Kawhi Leonard, but it doesn't always work out that way. In this current cap environment, you might get stuck with that contract and I,

[Dave DeFore]

or you might lose the player. And this is, I think what happened with Cleveland. Okay. They signed this, this four year extension and it's a year early because he could opt out next summer.

[Esperahenny]

And leave.

[Dave DeFore]

Yeah, and leave. And you're in a position where you're pot committed to the Donovan Mitchell version of this team and so now you've got to lock it up and then you're just, you're planning ahead.

[Esperahenny]

Well, it's better than the ultra two years from now.

[Dave DeFore]

I get. Yeah, it is better. I mean I, I think any scenario where you keep your guys is good, but it's not exactly what's happening. I think like we're seeing a, a devaluation in, in a certain type of player. You know, if you're not a top eight guy, top 10 guy, and you're paid like it, you're just, you, you just don't have a lot of value outside of your team. And so if the Cavs run into like, if they, if they're not successful, it's just wasted money, you know. And I think that you look ahead to the decisions, I guess that they have to make are two years from now. I'm, I'm assuming Harden winds up on some sort of as well. Yeah. Extension to your deal. You know, if, let's say they bring LeBron in, that's going to be a short term sort of thing and then they've got contract decisions to make on, on Evan Mobley and Jared Allen is also kind of expensive. So. But to, to sign up for this sort of contract, you're going to be thinking, you know, age 33 year old, Donovan Mitchell, $73 million. Well, I just don't see how that's, that's feasible in, in the way that, that the NBA CBA seems to be affecting team building. You know, how, where is your flexibility at all?

[Esperahenny]

This is, this is something I also thought of when Devin Booker signed his contract extension, which was a hefty, hefty contract extension. It was two years, $132 million. So on top of what he's already making in years, where he's 32 years old and 33 years old, he'll be making 63 and 68 million dollars. Now, Devin Booker probably honestly in a similar tier to Donovan Mitchell and Jalen Brown.

[Leesa Mattress Spokesperson]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Like, I mean I have him below,

[Dave DeFore]

I have him below Them.

[Esperahenny]

Okay.

[Dave DeFore]

If they're tier 2, which I think they are for. For Law Murray's. Where's Law Murray?

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, we gotta get some confirmation.

[Dave DeFore]

I'm pretty sure they're in that 2B tier that, that he's got. I would have Booker in Tier 3. I just don't think he's as good as those guys. Yeah.

[Esperahenny]

Either way, like you were paying a guy of that caliber that type of money and I don't think that's feasible for you anymore. And there's this sort of course correction that's happening in the NBA where salaries are getting adjusted and you're, you're sort of seeing that. I know Jalen Duran is a restricted free agent. We haven't seen a sort of agreement there from the Pistons, but I think the Pistons are looking ahead and saying we can't pay this guy who is probably not that tier of player.

[Dave DeFore]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

That type of money. And I just. Where does that end up with the NBA and team building? You know, like what. What will happen to the spurs four years down the road?

[Dave DeFore]

I think we already know they. Well, number one, they've got the Fox situation that they will have to figure out because the money is going to come due here soon enough.

[Finn AI Representative]

Right.

[Dave DeFore]

Wemby's going to get an extension. You know, obviously, I think you, you're going to keep Castle and you're going to have Harper, but then you're going to have to make probably a Harper Castle decision down the line. You know, already I would guess Kelton Johnson is a guy who's not long for. For the spurs because again, these contracts just, they, they just, you know, when they're coming, they're scheduled. So I mean the spurs will have that decision. I mean okc, we're watching them right now. Have to go through that. Where I, I mean, do you expect Lou Dork to be on the team to finish out the season?

[Esperahenny]

Yeah. No, I don't think so. I think it's natural for them to, to kind of progress and move forward. Another team I think of and it's like maybe this is the way to move forward. If you are expensive is the Minnesota Timberwolves who obviously got their North Star and Anthony Edwards. But every year they've sort of tweaked and tweaked and tweaked and so it's inserted Rudy Gobert kick out Carl Anthony Towns.

[Dave DeFore]

But it was a money play on the Carl Anthony Towns thing. Like again, they were early adopters on this. Yeah. Hey, we gotta, we gotta get out

[Esperahenny]

of this Business, shed salary and do the whole thing. Yeah, exactly. So I, I think that's kind of the way forward though, you know, and, and maybe teams that are expensive right now will have to come and deal with that as well. Like maybe the Cavaliers, they've invested in Donovan Mitchell now, which means maybe they end up trading Evan Mobley. Does. Does it mean that, you know, of course the New York Knicks are expensive. We'll see what happens with Karl Anthony Towns's extension. Maybe Towns is another guy who's kind of a victim of this CBA situation. Right. Shout out to Kyle Kuzma who says the. In. In his own words, maybe, maybe said that the, the. The CBA is ruining things for, for players in the middle of the. I think it's kind of condensed contracts, right? You're seeing lower level players get bigger contracts. You're seeing top tier players kind of get condensed. And even that, like the creme de la creme of the NBA, the SGAs, the Yokiches, who will be a free agent next year, those guys are still going to get their money, right? It's the next tier. It's. It's what there's next 35 to 85 that get condensed, right, To a small.

[Dave DeFore]

And a lot of those guys were walking into max deals right? Under the previous. Like when we were thinking about the

[Esperahenny]

three star system, it was like a natural system, right?

[Dave DeFore]

It was like, hey, we're gonna have the, the two, the two big maxes, the one small max. And then everything else is going to be sort of the, you know, these smaller contracts. And now, I mean, this new CBA look to, to Kyle Kuzma's credit, he's not wrong in that it is hurting a lot of the players, especially in the middle class. But I mean, for me, I just think that it's hurting the fans. The more that this stuff drives decisions like Jalen Brown being traded away from the Celtics, the worse it is for fans. I don't think anybody wants to just root for laundry.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah, I agree.

[Dave DeFore]

I agree.

[Esperahenny]

Also, I will say, like, there should be a clause, hopefully this happens in the next CBA where if you draft a player like the Celtics drafted Jaylen Brown, there should be some sort of incentive to keeping that player more than there currently is. And I know we had that before with, you know, the supermax, and obviously that still exists. But it seems like Brad Stevens brought

[Dave DeFore]

this up in his press conference. He said, look, if this 35% max only counted as 25% to the cap.

[Esperahenny]

Exactly.

[Dave DeFore]

Then we probably don't have to make this decision. And that to me seems at least sensible, especially for guys you draft.

[Esperahenny]

Like, the Cavs can't do that with Donovan Mitchell, obviously, but the, the warriors should be able to do that with Steph Curry. The Raptors should be able to do that with Scotty Bar, whoever.

[Leesa Mattress Spokesperson]

Right.

[Esperahenny]

Like, guys who get drafted to their teams should be kind of given an incentive to stay.

[Dave DeFore]

If I'm the league though, I'm pointing to the way to the parody and the dispersal of, of talent. And I'm gonna point probably at this upcoming season. I mean, as we talked about this a little bit, like the east is kind of back, but the east is going to have, you know, the 1 seed might win 55 games.

[Esperahenny]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

Because you're going to have teams over there like Brooklyn is going to potentially win like 30, 35 games instead of, you know, tanking out to the bottom. And I think if the NBA is looking at it from that perspective, look at how much easier it is to, to get the talent spread out around the league. And I just don't know if that's necessarily a great thing.

[Esperahenny]

But at one point, and I agree with you, it's great. I mean, we've, we've enjoyed some great basketball over the last couple of years, but at one point does the brand of. Not, not brand of basketball, but like the brand loyalty kind of wither away? Like the reason, you know, the late.

[Dave DeFore]

We watch that, we watched that in real time though with like LeBron, like, yeah, LeBron changed teams. His fans went with him.

[Esperahenny]

They, they go with him.

[Dave DeFore]

And that happens more and more and more as these big time players leave teams. I mean, how many Mavs fans left the Dallas Mavericks that are now Lakers fans? I know a lot of them in Slovenia did. Right. Because they're not just rooting for laundry. So I do think that they're, there's got to be a way to, to try to solve that, that problem. Because if you can't have these franchises have iconic players and I mean guys that are spending their entire career there, you're going to lose out on a lot.

[Esperahenny]

Guys like who we talked about earlier, Kyle Lowry, that's a, that's a very. He's not Victor Wembanyama, he's not Nicola Jokic. But the reason he was able to stay was because the Raptors were able to get him on friendlier contracts. And that part of that was like injuries and stuff like that. But it, it worked out because of that, you know.

[Dave DeFore]

Well, that's the real secret. Injuries, the owners are hoping that these guys all take less money to make it work because they're competitive.

[Esperahenny]

Jalen Brunson with the Knicks. I I know. I don't. I. Look, I don't know if that's necessarily the recipe either. I don't think that either of us agree with owners should be lining their pockets instead of the players who deservedly need the money and should get the money. But it's just, it's tough. I I'm, I'm very curious what will happen like 15 years down the line when this CBA is probably different, looks a little bit different. There's bigger quirks that people have issues with. We'll see what happens. But the parody is good.

[Dave DeFore]

Is Donovan Mitchell traded next summer or

[Esperahenny]

the following summer if they flame out next year and let's say LeBron is on the team and it's his final year, Hoorah, et cetera. I could see them trading him next summer.

[Griffin]

Yeah.

[Dave DeFore]

Yep.

[Esperahenny]

But, but good luck trying to is

[Dave DeFore]

a huge contract that he just signed. I don't know if you Anyway, that's gonna do it for the show, folks. Thank you guys for listening. For S. Barahenny, I'm Dave Dufour and this has been the NBA Daily. Thanks for waking up with us. Thanks for listening. Make sure you hit the subscribe or follow button so you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed it, drop a like leave a rating or let us know in the comments. Thank you guys for waking up with us.