Unless some other move is made, the Cleveland Cavs will play the waiting game in the upcoming 2025 NBA draft coming June 25.
That’s because the team doesn’t own a first-round pick, which would have come at No. 29 in the first round.
Why don’t the Cavs have a first-round pick in 2025?
The regular season success the Cavs have had for the past three seasons only came because president of basketball operations (then general manager) Koby Altman made a bold move trading for Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell.
What did the Cavs give up for Donovan Mitchell?
The trade sent forward Lauri Markkanen, guard Collin Sexton and guard Ochai Agbaji to Utah.
Advertisement
The Jazz also received the Cleveland’s first-round picks in 2025, 2027 and 2029 and the right to swap first-round picks in 2026 and 2028.
Mitchell was the lone asset to come back to the Cavs.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) drives to the basket against Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during Game 5 of a second-round playoff series May 13, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Was the Donovan Mitchell trade worth it for the Cavs?
Mitchell’s arrival in the 2022-23 season helped the team to a playoff appearance where they bowed out in the first round.
In the past two seasons, the team lost to the eventual champion Boston Celtics in 2024. They lost to the Indiana Pacers in the second round this season. The Pacers will play the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2025 NBA Finals, which begin June 5.
Do the Cavs have any picks in this year’s NBA draft?
Why yes, the Cavs have two second-round picks. The first comes at No. 49 overall courtesy of a convoluted trade (aren’t they all in the NBA?) involving the Milwaukee Bucks. The team’s pick at No. 58 is their own.
Advertisement
George M. Thomas covers a myriad of things including sports and pop culture, but mostly sports, he thinks, for the Beacon Journal.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What picks do the Cavs have in the 2025 NBA draft?