Does Donovan Mitchell BELONG On the Cleveland Cavaliers MOUNT RUSHMORE?! | BEST MOVE Cavs Made?

Does Donovan Mitchell BELONG On the Cleveland Cavaliers MOUNT RUSHMORE?! | BEST MOVE Cavs Made?

On today’s show, Spencer German stops by. We’re going to talk about all the moves that the Cavs made this off seasonason. Plus, the folks over at the Lockdown NFL channel did something that I want to steal. So, I’m bringing in the host of Lockdown Browns to do just that on today’s edition of Locked On Cavs. You are Locked On Cavs, your daily Cleveland Cavaliers podcast, part of the Locked Onet. Your team every day. What’s up everybody? My name is Danny Cunningham and you might know me from my time covering the Cavs places like my Substack, the Inside Shot, Cleveland Magazine, 923 The Fan, and a number of other stops along the way. Joined today by Spencer German, who does a great job over at Cleveland Cavaliers on SI, as well as 923 The Fan, and of course is the host of the Locked On Browns podcast, which should be your second listen today on Friday, July 25th. And thank you for making this your first listen. You can find our show anywhere you get podcast, Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else. Make sure you give us a fivestar rating and leave us a nice review. And of course, if you’re watching on YouTube, do us a favor. Hit that thumbs up button for us. Click subscribe and hit that notification bell so you don’t miss the latest lockdown Cavs content. A proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. And today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, and use code lockdown NBA. That is Lok Ced NBA for $20 off your first purchase. Again, that’s code locked on NBA for $20 off your first purchase with Game Time. As I mentioned, Spencer German does a great job over at Cleveland Cavaliers on SI. Also is a co-orker of mine over at 923 the Fan. So, depending on what time of day you are listening to this on Friday, you could actually turn your radio dial right now to 923 the fan and maybe potentially hear us. If it’s between 6:00 and 10 a.m. Eastern, we are on 923 The Fan right now. Of course, we’re recording this on Thursday night, but Spencer, I wanted to kind of do an offseason overview, and that’s been a big part about what this week over at Lockdown Cavs has been about because the Cavs were not, you know, the most active team this summer. I don’t think anyone expected them to be the most active team. But in essence, I think they had five moves that are worth talking about. We’re not going to talk about, you know, drafting Salang with the number 58 overall pick just because that has no impact on what the Cavs are going to look like this upcoming season. And I think that, you know, there will be a time and place to talk about that, but that’s not now. I look at it this off seasonason as five maybe six moves, trading for Lonzo Ball, signing Sam Merrill, signing Larry Nance, drafting Tyrese Proctor, letting Tyrum walk, and I guess we could throw into um the organization signing Kobe Alman and his front office staff to an extension through the 2030 um season. But before we dive into it, just overall what’s been your evaluation of what they’ve done this summer? Yeah, I think like to your point, I think we all kind of went to the off season understanding they were going to be a second apron team, which was obviously going to limit what they were going to be able to do anyway. There was so much there. I mean, think about all the conversations that were had just about what does the second apron mean? We were all sort of trying to learn on the fly some of the the real regulations and and restrictions that it puts on teams. You even heard um even heard GMs around the league talk about how like Brad Stevens notably with the Celtics like how they were sort of learning all all like the everything that comes with that and the Celtics actually were a team that had to make some moves to get out from the second apron this this summer. So I wasn’t surprised that we didn’t see a team that was like super active. You know I I we tossed around different trade scenarios where it’s like maybe you break up the core four. Um, but I think understanding the restrictions they had, where they’re kind of at as a team right now, everything that comes with that, I think Kobe Alman did the best he could to sort of make some tweaks in the margins and and prepare this team or put this team in a in a position to chase that ultimate goal of winning a championship, which is going to be at the forefront of their mind next year because even as Donovan Mitchell said at the end of last of the season, right? Like we could go 82 and0 and nobody cares next year. like it it is only about winning a championship. Now, you can debate like how much these moves that we’re going to get into impact that goal, if they were good moves to help that goal. The Tai Jerome thing was pretty controversial, so we can talk about that a little bit. But, yeah, I I think given what they had from a resource standpoint, I I come away feeling pretty happy with with the moves that they tried to make and the way that they tried to just tweak this roster to to try to get over that hump. and they’re trying something a little bit different with some different players and parts and and I I I think they, you know, tried to accomplish that goal the best that they could, right? And I do think too um they maybe might not be as good of a regular season team this upcoming year as they were last year. I mean, they won 64 games and I I think if they take a step back, a small step back, I’m not saying that they’re going to drop to 45 wins, like that’s not what this team’s going to be. they’re going to win 55 plus games in my opinion. But if they take a small step back in the regular season in order to take a step forward in the postseason, I do think that could be part of the way maybe not the intended unintended consequence of some of these moves. But I do think that some of these moves could maybe lead to some drawbacks in the regular season, but could show their benefits in the postseason ultimately, Spencer. Like I think that’s what this all has to be about. Yeah. No, 100%. Um, you know, like like and to use the Ty Jerome thing as an example, like Ty Jerome was phenomenal throughout the regular season for this team especially. And my guess is as they evaluated whether or not they wanted to bring him back or not and understanding where they were financially and how much they wanted to go into the tax to pay certain guys, I’m assuming they kind of looked and said, “Okay, is this somebody who helps us get over that hump in the playoffs or are there ways that we can get better?” And that was kind of the premise behind everything that they did from there. We we talked a ton about adding pieces, adding veterans who have some playoff pedigree, who have been in this league for a long time, who know what it takes to win that time of year. I think that’s what the Larry Nance move is about, right? Like we’ve we this team’s needed a backup big for for quite some time now. and you kind you get a guy that can do that and play some other positions for you as well and who’s familiar with the organization with the culture obviously and he kind of accomplishes that. He checks that box for you. So yeah, I I 100% think there there could be some drawbacks in terms of like what this team looks like in the regular season, but you know, I I think it’s the unfortunate part of the NBA to a degree is the players themselves have made it feel like the regular season doesn’t matter that much, especially with some of the load management stuff. I think everyone kind of goes into it understanding, you know, it’s about the playoffs and especially with a team like the Cavs that now two years in a row have gotten bounced in the second round and you have high expectations for, it’s going to be more about the playoffs than ever before. And so, yeah, like I I I I hate that you go into a season almost where it feels like people are going to sort of not be as excited maybe about the the regular season and it’s going to be just kind of marching towards March and April and May. But at the same time, if if that means you win less games, but then you advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, I think people will take that trade-off when when push comes to show. Yeah. And I I I do wonder what the trade-off needs to be. Like I think it probably needs to be the NBA Finals rather than the Eastern Conference Finals, but that’s probably a different discussion for another day. But I do want to dive into some of the moves that they made. So I mentioned the five like transactional ones. I I think that we don’t need to spend time talking about Kobe Alman and the rest of the front office getting the extension they got. Like I think that was welld deserved, but I don’t think that is I don’t think that’s something that affects whether or not they win basketball games next season. Like I just don’t think that has an onc court effect for next season. Um I think it’s a good thing for the organization though. So of the five that I’ve listed, trading for Lonzo Ball, signing Sam Merryill, signing Larry N Jr., drafting Tyrese Proctor and letting Ty Drum walk. What is the move that you liked the least of those five? Spencer, I think of the if I’m if I’m picking the le my least favorite of these moves, I probably would put Ty Jerome there. Um, and it’s not to say that it it won’t necessarily pay off, but I I think like sitting here even today, several weeks removed from the the trade they made for Lonzo Ball, which I think was the the sort of symbolic end to Ty Jerome is is going to um, you know, is is going to not be here next year. I do think like by addition by subtraction, I have I have questions, right? like I I need to see proof of concept with the the new for like the the new roster they’ve sort of assembled here before I can fully know, hey, yeah, this this was worth it because Ty Jerome was so important to this team last year. Sixman of the of the year candidate as we know. Uh his offense off the bench was was so so valuable to this team at certain points in the season. I understand that in the postseason it kind of dis disappeared in that in that Indiana series and then he had his best game was was really the last game he played against them in game five and so it seemed like he maybe found something there. Um and I do think ultimately like his performance in the playoffs is what led to them ultimately deciding you know let’s let’s let’s move on from from him. Um but you know we found out later they didn’t even really offer him a deal. Like they didn’t even really put a deal on the table in front of him. So, they seem pretty, you know, convinced that this was something that they were okay letting happen in order to bring somebody else in. And that person is Lonzo, which we’ll get to. But I I do think like right now I do worry about like what that like what losing that spark means for this team until I see in action what the the new setup they have looks like and how it all sort of comes together. So, I I do understand that entire line of thinking. Um because Lonzo, like if Lonzo didn’t come with the injury risks that he just inherently comes with because he’s played 70 games in the last four years and I do think that we’ve kind of forgotten that Tai Jerome has also played very few games over the last four years um because of injury issues of his own. Yeah, it’s a good point. So I do think if he came without those injury risks, we might look at those two moves a little bit differently than we do. Now, that being said, Lonzo probably also would not have been available for the the the low price of Isaac Aoro this off seasonason only. Like, I just don’t think that’s a trade that could have been made um if Lonzo wasn’t coming with some injury red flags. That said, I do think the Cavs when they started making their moves and the Lonzo Ball trade was the very first one they made this off season. I think they were operating under the idea that Ty Jerome was gonna get more money from another team than he ultimately got. Like I think that the Cavs expected Ty Jerome to get roughly $14 million, roughly the mid-level exception. And I think that they had made the decision we are not going to offer Ty Derome the mid-level exception, but sort of a hey, best luck, congratulations on getting paid type of situation. Now, obviously, Tai did not get that amount of money. So, the Cavs were operating in not the reality, I guess, because he didn’t make that amount of money. But, I think they went through a lot of their offseason thinking, okay, well, we can’t necessarily get Tai for 14, but could we get Sam Merrill and Lonzo Ball combined for 19? Like, is that better than paying Ty Drum $14 million? So, I do think that you almost have to look at it in the aggregate, but I think of all the moves that they’ve made. There are two that I look at and say, “Yeah, that one could be looked at as uh that that hurt you.” And Tai Jerome walking away, I think is one of those two moves because he is, listen, I think he had a great offensive season. I don’t know how real it is considering it was the first year where he was a a very good NBA player. like if it keeps up, he’s going to look like a bargain at $9 million for the Memphis Grizzlies, but we don’t know exactly what that’s going to be. So, I do think there’s a little bit of risk on both sides of that deal, both either paying him $9 million, which I think is probably fair value for him, or letting him walk away. Yeah, listen, I I think you’re 100% right uh in terms of how you’re sort of viewing it. I the money part of it is is I think an important line to for people to remember, too. like you’re basically paying slightly more than what you thought they thought they were going to pay, Tai, and you’re getting two players out of it, right? Like it’s kind of like a two for one in that way. And yeah, I I I that’s the thing that fall I fall back on though is I I can to me sitting here today, I feel like by losing Ty Jerome, the team is worse. But that’s also before I get a chance to really see Lonzo go out and play and see if he can stay healthy. And that’s the big question mark, right? Like if he stays healthy, I think fans will quickly be accepting of Lonzo and feel like, hey, this this this was the right move. Like I’m not going to say they’re going to forget about Tyron, but I think they’ll be losing him will feel a little less sting. Like there won’t be as much sting to it. But um we have to see it first. And I think fans have to feel like see that Lonzo can actually stay on the floor, which has been a big question in recent years of his career before they kind of they they they they get to that point. So, I I’m with you that the Tai Jerome move definitely feels like one that in the in the immediate right now hurts the team and it’s kind of like a wait andsee thing from here. Yes. And we will dive into the other four moves that the Cavs made this offseason. Plus, Lockdown NFL did their Mount Rushmore for every franchise. Spencer put one together for the Browns. We’re not going to talk about that, but we are going to put together one for the Cavs coming up later on today’s show right here on Locked on Cavs. Today’s show brought to you by Game Time. Have you ever decided at the very last minute to head to a ball game with friends or family? Maybe right now is game day and you suddenly realize that you know what, you don’t want to be just sitting around when the baseball game’s going on. 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Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. Thank you again for making Lock on Cavs your first listen today and every day. You can find the show anywhere you get your podcast, Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else. Spencer German cannot stand that the Cavs allowed Ty Drrome to walk. Spencer, what was move number four on your list out of five, what was the fourth one for you? Yeah, I would for me I’d probably put the Tyrese Proctor draft pick fourth. And it’s nothing against Tyrese Proctor. I think he has a chance to be a a a role player in this league in some capacity. I know he I know you were there in Vegas or actually were you there for the last game in Vegas where he dropped 35. Were you still there for that? I was. Yes. Yes. I uh I unlike your uh your co-host Spencer Davies. Um I was able to actually watch the Cavs in P in person unlike him because uh just a word of advice, never fly with that guy. Don’t get on a plane. Did you fly out there with him? Did you fly out there with him? No. No. No. His flight got cancelled. I got there on time. Oh no. Oh no. Okay. Well, good advice moving forward. But um yeah, so you got to see the the beginning of the legend that is going to be Tyresese Proctor now that I have him as my fourth my fourth on this list here. And again, it’s nothing against him. I just the reason I put it fourth, I think for me is I’m not sure Tyrese Proctor is going to be making an immediate impact on this team uh next year. Like I I think there’s it’s it’s going to sort of be this learning curve. I mean, he’s a second round pick. you’re not really counting on anybody in the second round contributing immediately, maybe if at all. Like it’s it’s kind of like a wait and see approach with him. Um, and I, you know, I I I think there’s other players that based on what the Cavs did this off season, Jaylen Tyson most notably, who will have a bigger role this next year, but I don’t think Proctor’s necessarily going to have an immediate impact have an immediate role on this team. And so for that reason, I just have it a little bit lower because I think the three moves I have above that actually impact the team next season in their pursuit of a a potential championship. Obviously, I think that’s totally fair. Um like I think in a perfect world Tyrese Proctor impacts the Cavs at a certain point, but I I don’t think in a perfect world the certain point is this year. like I think a year from now and I do think that with the way that you have to build a team with the second apron that we’ve talked about so much you have to hit on lowcost talent and Tyrese Proctor where he was picked is lowcost talent the same way that Sam Merrill was lowcost talent and Dean Wade still is lowcost talent and Craig Porter Jr is lowcost talent even Jaylen Tyson is lowcost talent you have to hit on some of that and Tyresese Proctor hitting on that I think would go a long way for the Cavs but I’m with you like I while I think it was a good pick. I just don’t think he’s going to have nearly the same impact on the 2025 2026 Cavs as the other three guys that we’re going to talk about here, Will. So, who did you have number three? Number three, I probably put the the Lonzo Ball trade. Um I So, here’s the thing. I I contemplated like would I have this move higher because I actually do think this move made a lot of sense for Cleveland from a number of fronts and you laid out some of this earlier. you know, it only cost you trading Isaac Aoro basically straight up for him. You didn’t have to give up any picks. There was nothing else involved money swap-wise. Like it all matched up. It was good. Um, and I think like Lonzo is is the type of playmaker you’re looking for, especially for that second unit. And with the with the Darius Garland injury, assuming Lonzo’s healthy to start the year, he’s probably going to be in the starting lineup, believe it or not, to sort of start the season. So, we’ll see what that kind of looks like. But, um, yeah, like I I I like this move. If if I know Lonzo’s going to be healthy, like if you could guarantee me he’s going to be healthy for all of next season and into the playoffs, then I’d be like, shoot, make this number one, right? Like, and forget about Ty Jerome, like it doesn’t matter. But I can’t guarantee that. And so, it is a little bit of a gamble here. Um, I understand what the Cavs are doing. Again, with the premise in the the the context of where they are financially, they had to sort of make these moves. You mentioned lowcost moves. they had to ma make a move that was sort of in the margins and they couldn’t be big spenders or go take like the big swing on somebody. So I think this move makes sense. It gives you something that you need. It fills a void left by Tai Jerome and it could work out uh incredibly well for this team. But again, I just have to see it. And so for that reason, I have it in the middle I think of this this group of of moves we’re talking about. So I probably have it a little bit higher than you because I I I like Lonzo Ball as a player. Um, the health thing is is the only question I have. Like I think he is a perfect fit. I think he is everything that Kenny Atinson wants in a second unit guard. Um, I I think when we hear from Kenny Atinson publicly next year at media day, I think he’s going to gush about Lonzo Ball. Like that is my and I don’t even think that’s a bold prediction because I just think knowing Kenny a little bit and knowing what kind of players he likes, Lonzo Ball is just the perfect Kenny Atinson player. So I think if you could guarantee health the way that you just brought I think that we are thinking okay well who are did OKC like are we going to Oklahoma City for the finals or are we going to maybe Houston or where are we flying for the finals like I if you can guarantee health for this team I think that’s where you’re at and like Lonzo is part of that it’s a giant question mark and you cannot guarantee it but if he’s healthy in the playoffs I think that he gives the Cavs a different version of themselves that they can tap into that they need to have in the postseason. I think that’s why I like it so much. I I Yeah, I think your head’s 100% in the right place and and I agree with everything you just said in terms of how he fits being a Kenny Atinson style player, what they’re looking for on that second unit. Uh, and like I said, I mean, going back to the Ty Jerome part of this, like I think they watched Ty Jerome in the playoffs and they said, “Yeah, like he was really great for us. He was a spark for us this season, but I don’t know if his game is what we’re looking for that time of year. And I think they think Lonzo’s is and so I can wrap my head around that and and that that like that’s the funny thing about it. I I would have this higher if you were guaranteeing me the health thing. But I think as I look at it, it’s like listen, Lonzo is everything I would want for a player for the Cavs, especially on Nick and unit where I’d be like, “Yeah, put it I’m I I I guess I I I describe it like this. I’m excited about the possibilities of Lonzo ball with this team where I’m like love it, but I’m also nervous about the possibilities of him maybe not playing as much as the Cavs would need him to. And so for that reason, it kind of felt like the middle was the perfect place for this this move to land because there’s kind of like that push and pull on both sides of of where it could potentially end up for the Cavs when it’s all said and done. I think that’s fair. And also I admire you um for trying to mimic Spencer Davies and just trying to ride the fence on something because that’s the thing he does better than anybody else. He’s very good at that. I’ I’ve learned from the best I guess at riding the fence. Exactly. We’ve got two left to get to plus our Mount Rushmore. That’s next right here on Locked on Cavs. Today’s show is brought to you by Epicore. Every team knows the value of hard work, of taking pride in what you build and practicing every detail to get the best results. 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Like I said earlier, if you’re watching the show on YouTube, do us a favor. Hit that thumbs up button for us. Click subscribe and hit that notification bell so you don’t miss the latest from Locked on Cavs. And Spencer, we’ve got two more moves to get to before we get to our Mount Rushmore. But what do you have as your second favorite move that the Cavs made this summer? Yeah, and this might surprise people, but I have the Sam Merrill resigning as my my second favorite move. Um, I get it. That was the first sort of domino to fall in losing Tai Jerome. And I think there was a lot of Cavs fans who were like they paid him but not Tai who maybe had a more impactful season last year. But when I when I when push comes to shove, man, like I I’ve talked so much about how I think a lot of these decisions came down to what they saw in the playoffs. And Sam actually played really well in the playoffs, especially on the defensive end. I understand the shooting wasn’t maybe up to par and what you’re looking for from him. Um, I think there were some moments for him in the postseason where he was knocking down those shots and I I anticipate that they are they are expecting when with this new contract that he will get there. He will be ready to knock down those shots next year in the playoffs. But his ability to step up and make some plays on defense, provide a little bit of a spark for this team. They sort of I think saw that he can be a two-way guy for them that time of year and that’s valuable. Plus, even if he’s not knocking down the shots, just the threat of having somebody who is a sharpshooter the way that Sam is, I think matters to this team. helps you space the floor. You can do so much off of that. And so I do like that they’re bringing Sam Merrell back because we talked for so many years in a row, Danny, about this team not having enough shooting, not having enough of these, you know, these wing players that can do a couple like multiple different things for you and play both ends of the floor. And so having somebody like Sam in this lineup that can can give you a little bit of everything, I think is super super valuable to them. Yes. And I think it was a reminder of how valuable monetarily movement shooting is because Sam is not just a good shooter. He’s a movement shooter that has a lot of gravity. And those are more difficult to find than guys that can just put the ball in the basket from beyond the three-point arc. And two, if you listen to the show, if you listen to, you know, Kenny Atinson’s postgame press conferences after games or his pregame press conference is probably more apt here. But when Sam Merrell gets asked about, you know, what’s the first thing he brings up with Sam? It’s always his defense. It’s always what he thinks of Sam as a defender because I have asked Kenny questions about Sam as a movement shooter and how impactful that is. And he will begin his answer talking about Sam’s defense and like I don’t care about that. I want to talk about his shooting. I want to talk about what he does offensively. But he wants to make it known that Sam is on the floor because he’s a good defender and he believes in him on that end. And I think that the the similarity between this move, trading for Lonzo Ball, and letting Ty Drrome walk is that the two guys they either obtained or retained are both guys they look at as two-way players. And Ty Drrome is not somebody they look at as a two-way player. And I think that is why we are in the position we’re in with this team. Yeah, I I I think that’s 100% spot on. Um I you know the playoffs I think were a telling lipmus test for this organization for Kenny Atinson for the front office of like okay who can fit into what we want to do this time of year and who can’t and unfortunately for Tai like he picked the worst series the worst time of year to have his worst games. he the the once and here’s the thing like it wasn’t just that he had a hard time defending you know Knee Smith in that series and others like it was also that his shot just wasn’t falling anymore and once he lost that I think it was like all bets are off for his his future I think it was a very telling you know moment in his in his career in his season and so yeah I understood why ultimately they decided to put the money in in Sam’s pocket instead of Jerome’s because of of what you said like him being a two-way a guy and that showed in the postseason. So that means number one you have Larry Nance Jr. returning to Cleveland. That’s correct. I I listen I love Larry Nance. He was great the first time he was here. Larry Nance I I should clarify Larry Nance Jr. because both Larry Nance has obviously played here. Um but this isn’t his Well, if they are bringing Larry Nance back, I don’t like that move as much. I I don’t think he has as much left in the tank as as his son. I would agree with you on that. Um but no, Larry Nance Jr. He was awesome. the first time he was here. Great for the culture, guy who has been battle tested. I I I think about like players who as we’ve talked so much about finding this team, you know, the the players that can be tough and gritty and and give you that extra sort of uh energy and and attitude in the playoffs. I think Larry Nance Jr. is going to bring that to the table. He’s also it also, I think, for him stems from a place of like how much he loves Cleveland. Like he would do anything for this city. even when he was in New Orleans, he was talking about Cleveland all the time. Like, uh, so I I I think this was the right move for a team to get younger at that position because right now, like previously, listen, as much as I know the city of Tristan Thompson, Tristan Thompson was not a like a legitimate contributor to this team um in that backup big spot. So, it was just never going to be something that was viable. They added him for the leadership portion of it and all those things, but he was never really impacted things on the floor. and Larry gives you a little bit of both of that. He’s going to be able to play. He’s going to be able to give you something on the floor. And he has that attitude and that personality that you’re kind of looking for. So, I thought from a culture standpoint especially, this was this was a really good move for the Cavs to address a need that they’ve had the last couple years. I I wholeheartedly agree with that. I I think that he’s going to be a great fit. I think the fact that he can play alongside either Jared or Evan is a very good thing for them, too. I think that is one of the things that they’ve been searching for in a backup big is not just somebody that can play center. It’s having somebody that can play alongside Jared Allen as well as alongside of a movie. I think that’s important. So, one of the things you guys did over at Locked on NFL um and more specifically you at Lockdown Browns is you put together your franchise Mount Rushmore and you put one together for the Browns. Everyone put together for whatever team they cover. We’ve not done this at Lockdown NBA. I don’t know if we’re doing this at Lockdown NBA. know we are going to have our top 100 list come out later this summer which you know I’ve already submitted a number of different calves that I think should be in the top 100 across the NBA but I don’t know if we’re doing a Mount Rushmore. So I wanted to go through this exercise with somebody who has experience in building a Mount Rushmore because I don’t I’ve not done this yet. So here’s what I I have settled on three names and I think I need help deciding on my fourth but I’m curious before I reveal who I have. Do you have a Cavs Mount Rushmore too? Are you putting together your Brownsville like, you know what, I should do this for the Cavs? I can’t say it came up that way, but when we talked about doing the show together and you mentioned you wanted to do it, I thought about it a little bit deeper. And I would assume any Mount Rushmore for the Cleveland Cavaliers has to obviously begin with LeBron James. If LeBron James is not on your Mount Rushmore, we’re throwing it out. We’re not paying any attention to it because he is obviously the greatest player in franchise history because he’s one of the greatest players in NBA history as well. Um, I would say I I would assume most people would have Mark Price on theirs. I think that needs to probably be a thing as well. I would then probably lean Brad Dohy being on it. And I’m if if that’s where you’re also at, I think this is where things get kind of interesting from here in terms of like who you put on next because I listen like Larry Nance Jr.’s dad, Larry Nance, is is in this conversation I think for like one of the best CS of all time. I think Zadrunus Elgowskis is part of in that conversation for best Cavaliers players of all time. You can maybe even make a case for Austin Carr and and by the way, all these guys I’m naming all have their numbers in the rafters obviously as well. But I what I find so interesting and and it might be enough to get him on there. Kyrie Irving has the biggest shot in this team’s history to win an NBA Finals. And I understand it was shortlived with Kyrie. I understand it was, you know, that people thought that was going to go on for a lot longer than it did. He forced his way out. It kind of got ugly at the end and it didn’t go the way anybody wanted to when it all sort of dispersed like that. But I can’t get out of my head that like we witnessed in real time. Who, by the way, I think Kyrie still is one of the greatest point guards I’ve ever seen in in in the NBA. the way he was able to just dribble like his his how how incredible he was and he was a great shooter like all that stuff the the skill set he had the package that he brought to the table he’s a phenomenal player on top of it but to know that he hit the biggest shot in franchise history I just I wonder if that’s enough to almost accelerate him past some of these other guys that we’re talking about to put him in it there’s probably some old heads out there that disagree and are like if you don’t have uh Larry Nance Senior on there like you’re doing it wrong But I I’m curious your where your thoughts are that because I think Kyrie is is is in that conversation strictly because of that moment in time and how much he contributed to the only championship this franchise has. So I think so Kyrie is in my list of guys that I’m in consideration for my fourth spot. Okay. And as you might imagine, I have LeBron James, like that’s in pen, that’s in Sharpie, like every if you are ever building a Cavs alltime list, and LeBron James is not at the top. Like, you can just stop because your list holds no water. Um, I have there’s somebody out there who’s who’s mad he left a second time and they’re just like, he’ll never be on my and that and that person is a for not having LeBron on there. Um, but that person probably does exist, but that person is a and they’re wrong. Um, I have Mark Price written in pen on my Mount Rushmore. Um, I guess I should say like chiseled already in there because that’s how much Rushmore. I have Donovan Mitchell on mine. Um, because I do think while he doesn’t have the longevity some of these other guys do have because he’s only now been in Cleveland for a few years, I think he is the second best basketball player to ever play for the Cavs. I think he is better than Mark Price. I think he is better than Kyrie Irving. I think he’s better than Brad Dohy who, you know, sneakily didn’t have the longest career. like he only played eight years with the Cavs. Um like his NBA career was was not all that long and like Mark Price if you want to go by accolades was a much more accomplished player from that team. Um and the fact that you know there are three guys in Cavs history I believe that have been first team AllNBA. It’s LeBron Mark Price did it once and Donovan Mitchell did it. Um Mark Price made a couple of third team AllNBAs. Like Donovan Mitchell has made first team all NBA and second team AllNNBA as a member of the Cavs. like it’s just him and LeBron in that category. So, I’ve got him up there for that. Even though the longevity just isn’t there, I don’t think that I have seen other than LeBron anybody better at basketball that has played for the Cavs than Donovan Mitchell. And I suspect that five years from now, we are having this conversation with Evan Mobley as part of it. I don’t have him in my like, you know, others receiving votes because he’s not hit that level of greatness yet. I anticipate he will, but I basically have one spot for Brad Dohy, Kyrie Irving, or Kevin Love because like Kevin Love sneakily has longevity, too. He was in Cleveland. I know it didn’t end. I know it didn’t end the way we wanted to, and I know he doesn’t have the moment that Kyrie has, but Kevin Love was here for a very long time and had a very good career in in Cleveland, too. Yeah. You know, it’s funny because like whenever I do this exercise, I always try to like show my respect for the older generations of Cavs teams. And so I I try to make sure I cover all my bases there. And I hadn’t even really thought at this juncture about putting Donovan in there yet because I don’t like maybe it’s just because like the the accomplishments like on the floor postse like the postseason thing maybe is is part of it. Um like how we h they haven’t gotten out of the second round and so we need on an even grander stage what he does. Maybe if he had beaten the the the the Pacers in that that game too where he just went absolutely nuts like maybe that changes my mind. He does have the 71point game obviously which is the the highest in Cavaliers history. So he’s certainly in the record books already. He’s certainly already done some things to garner respect and be in this conversation. But I think for me like Donovan was still kind of at a place when we started like when I thought about this where I was like he might get he might be there eventually but I don’t know if I’m putting him there yet. And I think for me it comes down to like the playoff stuff. So, but I like that you have him in there already. I agree with your sentiments that he probably is the second best player in Cavaliers history at this who’s played for the team. Um, you know, I I I think there’s probably a little bit more that people want to see before they put him on their Mount Rushmore. And I think that’s also fair. And it’s it’s it’s it’s always so interesting when we do this exercise because everybody has a different way they’re like grading or deciding who makes it. And I think the one of the things I always go to is like, can you tell the history of the Cleveland Cavaliers without this player? And you know that when you’re doing only four players, that’s you know, I know that’s also the logic used for like the Hall of Fame, right? When you’re only doing four players, you’re obviously going to leave guys off that that would tell the story of the Cavaliers franchise. It’s just impossible. But um yeah, I don’t know. Like, can we tell the story of the Cleveland Cavaliers history without Donovan Mitchell? I think there’d be a lot of people who would argue yes right now because of these shortcomings in the postseason at this point. And I do think they’ll get there. I do hope they’ll get there so we can add him to this list. But I I I would want I wonder where other people are at with the Donovan Mitchell part of this conversation because I think it’s a fascinating entry and I do think he’s he at least deserves to be in the conversation. I think it’s a very fascinating entry and I think that the postseason stuff when when you look at this franchise is not having you I mean obviously the LeBron era is so much different but it’s not as if a lot of those other guys had the postseason success either like the the 92 team went to the conference finals but that’s the only time they ever made it out of the second round too. So, while we can talk about how great those days were, and those teams were awesome, I don’t know that they were quite as good as the team that the Cavs just had, and they and I get it, you know, they ran into Michael Jordan, and that guy was pretty good. Um, I’m not going to push back on that. Yeah. But they lost in the first round seven times between 88 and 98. And they only made it out of the first round twice. And one of the times they did it, they lost in the conference semi-finals. the other time they lost in the conference finals. So, it’s not as if that group has just some overwhelming postseason success, too. Like, I think that has to be part of it. Yeah. In my efforts to be thorough and and really pay to the older generation of of teams and players. I uh I clearly neglected Donovan Mitchell. So that’s on that. But I like to your point like both Mitchell, Kyrie, like I think a lot of people would probably have the three that I mentioned in theirs like especially older older generations and it might come down to like are you putting Donovan in because he’s Donovan, he’s great and he probably is the second best Cavaliier of all time or are you putting Kyrie in because he was part of those runs to the finals and has the greatest shot in team history? Like it it like there’s so many different ways you can sort of slice this and go with it. Um, but I I think this was a pretty good discussion. I think we actually covered like all the bases on people who probably are deserving of the conversation and I’d be fascinated to see what your listeners also think about this exercise and who they put in over who and if Donovan is is is in at this point um from in their perspective. Yeah, I I think it’ll be very interesting. I’d love to know in the YouTube comments what you think. And of course, uh I think that this discussion might be a little bit different a year from now. So maybe you and I will have to reconvene in about 12 months to have that same conversation. But Spencer, thanks so much for taking the time to jump on Locked on Cavs if you want to listen to Spencer’s Browns takes each and every day, make sure you make Locked on Browns your second listen or right now if you’re listening between 6:00 and 10 a.m. You can flip on 92 through the fan and you can hear he and I doing a show together because that’s exactly what we are doing on Friday morning. But thank you for making Locked on Cavs your first listen. Thank you for making it your first listen every single day. You can find the show anywhere you get your podcasts, Apple, Spotify, or anywhere else. And we are on YouTube. Make sure you hit that thumbs up button for us as we get out here. Click subscribe and hit that notification bell. We’ll be back next week talking more about the Cavs.

On this episode of Locked On Cavs, Danny Cunningham (The Inside Shot, Cleveland Magazine, 92.3 The Fan) analyzes the Cleveland Cavaliers’ offseason moves and creates a Mount Rushmore of Cavs players with guest Spencer German (Cleveland Cavaliers on SI, Locked On Browns). The duo examines the team’s strategy as a second apron team, discussing key transactions like Ty Jerome’s departure and Lonzo Ball’s acquisition. They explore the potential impact of these moves on the Cavs’ playoff performance and debate Sam Merrill’s re-signing. The episode culminates in a spirited discussion about the greatest players in Cavaliers history, with LeBron James and Mark Price securing spots while Donovan Mitchell, Brad Daugherty, and Kyrie Irving vie for inclusion. Danny and Spencer offer insights on how recent achievements and postseason success factor into their Mount Rushmore selections, providing Cavs fans with a comprehensive look at the team’s past and present.
Check out Danny’s Substack, The Inside Shot: https://theinsideshot.substack.com/
Email the show: LOCavsmailbag@gmail.com

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