Two unexpected teams join Donovan Mitchell’s trade talks

Most of Donovan Mitchell’s trade rumors have focused on the New York Knicks. But new rumors suggest two new teams have joined the hunt.

As the Jazz made it clear that they were open to trade offers from Donovan Mitchell, trade opportunities quickly increased. But the rumors seemed to be swift enclose to the New York Knicks.

The Knicks don’t quite have the pieces to put together an offer on the same level as what the Jazz got for Rudy Gobert, which is why we haven’t heard anything new on the subject lately. Corresponding Tony Jones and Shams Charania from The Athleticwhile the Knicks still appear to be the front runner, two surprising teams have entered the chat.

According to sources, the Knicks and Jazz had fresh trade talks last week about potential packages for Mitchell. There is no connection between the two teams in a deal and no Mitchell trade is imminent for the Jazz, sources said. The Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards are also among the teams pursuing Mitchell, these sources said.

Could the wizards or hornets actually be acting for Donovan Mitchell?

Any package for Mitchell will likely need to include a talented young player or two, as well as a massive war chest of future draft picks. Both teams have little to do with future draft assets — the Hornets own Denver’s first-round pick next season and owe their own to the Spurs; The Wizards have no additional firsts and owe their 2023 first-round pick to the Knicks. That means a trade would likely clean up his own collection of future picks, which should really make him feel like Mitchell is opening his mastery window.

In terms of young players, the Hornets could send the likes of PJ Washington and Terry Rozier. For the Wizards, a deal would have to either send out Bradley Beal, which complicates matters significant, or built around the likes of Deni Avdija, Daniel Gafford and Kyle Kuzma. Neither package looks that appealing on paper, but then again they would bid against a Knicks package that will reportedly not feature RJ Barrett and will feature Immanuel Quickley, Obi Toppin and Quentin Grimes as centerpieces.

As fun as it is to envision Mitchell in a Hornets or Wizards uniform next season, him on the Knicks or still on the Jazz seems a lot more likely next season.