Cleveland

Cavaliers

With Donovan Mitchell receiving his extension earlier this month, the Cavaliers have secured another critical piece of their foundation. Mobley’s deal includes incentives that could increase the total value to $269 million by its completion. While the 23-year-old big man boasts a high fantasy floor, the spacing issues arising from sharing the court with Jarrett Allen have limited Mobley’s ceiling. He’s worth selecting with a third-round pick in standard league drafts, but don’t be surprised if the final return is fourth-round value.

Tyson’s play improved throughout the NBA 2K25 Summer League, culminating in a 23-point effort in Saturday’s finale. The former Cal standout’s selection with the 20th overall pick was a bit surprising, but he has the talent and scoring ability to help the Cavaliers immediately. Tyson was highly efficient on Saturday, and while he’s likely headed toward a low-usage role as a rookie, he’ll be worth tracking during the preseason.

After struggling in their loss to the Warriors on Wednesday, Tyson bounced back with his best game of the summer. He fell one assist shy of recording a triple-double and had more points, rebounds and assists than he has had in any other game during Summer League. The No. 20 pick in the draft has had a solid summer and could end up being a big part of Cleveland’s rotation this season. However, with the amount of talent already on the team, it is unlikely that he’ll contribute much in fantasy in year one.

Tyson, the 20th overall pick in last month’s draft, shot the ball well for a second consecutive game in Las Vegas. After scoring 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting in his summer debut on Friday, the former Cal standout produced another 50% effort from the field. Another positive for the Cavaliers has been Tyson’s rebounding, as he’s up to 15 boards in two games. Even with the moves made before last season, Cleveland still needed to upgrade its wing rotation, and the hope is that Tyson will be the answer.

Bates and the Cavaliers got off to a hot start and did not look back, rebounding from their opening night loss in impressive fashion. After spending last season on a two-way contract, Bates was issued a qualifying two-way offer, making him a restricted free agent. The 20-year-old wing offers solid upside, and continuing to play well in Las Vegas will go a long way toward securing his NBA future.

This isn’t a surprising update, considering Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer reported the likelihood of this extension in mid-June. According to Woj, “A significant part of Mitchell’s belief in committing on a new deal comes with his confidence in Koby Altman’s vision to keep building the Cavs into a championship contender and an alignment on their partnership together.” Mitchell and Co. have had back-to-back playoff disappointments, most recently due to several key injuries. A healthy Cleveland team should be a perennial playoff team, but how far the team can go is in question based on recent moves from New York and Philadelphia to bolster their respective rosters.

Burns isn’t getting a contract from the Cavs, but he will have an opportunity to earn one if he plays well. He averaged 12.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists last season and helped guide NC State to the Final Four. He had two big performances during that run, which led to him being one of the hottest names in college basketball. The 6'9" big man has reportedly slimmed down to be able to play in the NBA, but even if he does earn a contract this summer, he will likely spend more time in the G-League.

Tyson played for three different schools during his three years in college. He barely saw the floor at Texas, but he was far more effective at Texas Tech as a sophomore. However, he truly broke out at Cal, where he averaged 19.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.6 triples per game last season. He evolved from just a 3-and-D prospect by showing some shot creation for both himself and his teammates at Cal, though he’ll have to be more efficient with the ball (3.1 turnovers per game last year) if he wants to do that in the NBA. He’ll at least be able to provide some two-way value off the bench for Cleveland in year one, though he may not be asked to do much more. He could do more self-creation in the future, but on a playoff team like the Cavs, he likely won’t have the ball in his hands enough to make a statistical impact as a rookie.

Mitchell can sign an extension this summer, and Cleveland must get something done. Given how much the franchise gave up in acquiring him from the Jazz in 2022, the last thing the Cavaliers need is to have Mitchell going into the final season of his contract without a deal. According to Fischer, the feeling across the league is that the two sides will get something done, locking in Mitchell as a cornerstone for a team that hopes to contend in the East.

While the team is still searching for a new head coach, there have also been questions regarding constructing the Cavaliers’ roster for next season. There has reportedly been interest in Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen, but according to Fischer, the team has no plans to move anyone. That “core four” includes Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley, with the latter flourishing while Allen was sidelined during the postseason with a rib injury. The fantasy ceilings of Garland, Allen, and Mobley were limited this season, and that likely remains the case in 2024-25 if Cleveland sticks with the same starting lineup.