When LeBron James announced his intentions to leave the Los Angeles Lakers a seek a new home in free agency, one of the teams believed to be in the running for his services was his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers. Ultimately James chose the Philadelphia 76ers, spurning what would have been his second homecoming. During Monday’s Media Day, Cavs star Donovan Mitchell admitted that he was a little surprised when LeBron James picked the 76ers, as per Camryn Justice of News 5 Cleveland.
“I didn’t think Philly. I thought if he didn’t come here, it would be Golden State,” Mitchell said. “But I probably knew as much as you did as far as that. It made sense to me, so that’s why kind of in my brain I was like, it’s probably going to happen. But it didn’t, and at the end of the day, I’m glad we made the move and got P-Watt. I’m excited about that, and I think for us it’s about moving forward and not really looking back at that.”
The move Donovan Mitchell was talking about was the Cavs pivoting to Peyton Watson after losing out on LeBron James to the 76ers. Watson was acquired in a sign-and-trade from the Denver Nuggets and is on track to play a key role for the team.
Article Continues BelowAs for the 76ers, they’re just another opponent on the schedule. Another opponent the Cavs will have to go through in their quest to contend in the Eastern Conference.
“I think for us, him and Philly, now they’re an opponent. They’ve gotten stronger, not just him, but they have Jaylen Brown, obviously [Tyrese] Maxey, VJ [Edgecombe], [Joel] Embiid,” Mitchell continued. “They got a lot of talent over there, they’ll be a fierce competitor, so we’re excited.

