Reports: Rockets eye Cavs star Donovan Mitchell as potential trade target

Per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, who covers the Rockets closely:

The one thing they (the Rockets) do have, they’ve got assets. They’ve got the 2027 and 2029 Suns picks. They’ve got the 2029 Mavs pick. They’ve got a swap in 2027 with the Brooklyn Nets. They are loaded, and they’ve got their own picks moving forward.

So, if they want to make a blockbuster trade… and look, we’ll see what happens with the Cavaliers. If Donovan Mitchell’s available, that is a guy I could see the Rockets being aggressive to go get. I would be surprised if they’re aggressive to get Giannis (Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks).

I would be surprised if they’re aggressive to get another guy in his 30s, but a 20-something star, I could see that. And they have the assets to compete in any bidding war.

Kelly Iko of Yahoo! Sports also recently reported that Mitchell could be a trade target for the Rockets.

The next dominoes to fall, of course, are in Cleveland. If the Cavaliers rally against Detroit and somehow advance, it would seem much more plausible that they keep the current team together.

If not, there are likely hard conversations to be had over the weeks ahead. Does Mitchell, now 29 years old, want to spend his remaining prime years on a team where there is an apparent second-round ceiling?

Or conversely, do the Cavaliers want to continue paying significant luxury tax money on a team with such a ceiling?

And beyond the contractual risk of potentially losing Mitchell as a 2027 free agent for no compensation, there is also the issue of his age. Should the Cavaliers want to change direction, they would probably get a better asset return for Mitchell now, rather than in a year or two.

Should one or both sides decide the time is right for a change, that would be the first domino. The next would be where Mitchell potentially wants to play outside of Cleveland.

After all, it’s unlikely that the Rockets or any other potential suitor would be willing to trade significant value without feeling confident that Mitchell wants to sign a longer-term contract there.

With that in mind, Mitchell holds the cards on multiple fronts, and there are many dominoes that all need to fall in order for a Houston deal to become realistic.

But at least conceptually, it does appear that the Rockets are interested in exploring the possibility. Houston enters the 2026 offseason coming off a pair of 52-30 seasons with first-round playoff exits, and a splash acquisition like Mitchell could potentially help the young Rockets get over that hump.

Granted, even if a deal becomes plausible, Mitchell and the Cavaliers being open to a Houston trade is just one part of the equation. Since both teams are well above the NBA’s salary cap, the Rockets would need to send the Cavaliers both desirable assets and sufficient matching salary.

Because Mitchell will make $50.1 million next season, the Rockets would have to send out close to that much from their current payroll. One benefit to summer negotiations is that the league’s expanded offseason rosters could make that challenge a bit more manageable, since the Cavaliers could more easily open up additional roster spots to accept a combination of contracts.

MacMahon did not speculate as to what players or future draft equity that Houston would be willing to part with in any Mitchell trade.

Mitchell averaged 27.9 points (48.3% FG), 5.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game this season. His scoring total led the Cavaliers while ranking seventh in the NBA, and he was an All-Star for the seventh consecutive year.

Mitchell was an All-NBA First Team selection last season.

More: ESPN: Rockets’ Patrick Fertitta ‘not wavering’ from patient approach

This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Reports: Rockets eye Cavs star Donovan Mitchell as potential trade target