CLEVELAND, Ohio — In this episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast, Ethan Sands, Chris Fedor, and Jimmy Watkins break down the Cavaliers’ fourth straight win with a 114-98 victory over the Orlando Magic.
Takeaways:
Donovan Mitchell Has Embraced a “Superhero” Role Out of Necessity
Donovan Mitchell’s evolution this season has been dictated by the team’s needs amidst significant injuries to Darius Garland and Max Strus. After focusing on elevating his teammates last season, circumstances have forced Mitchell to carry a much heavier scoring burden. The hosts noted that this shift into “superhero mode” may be more than Mitchell preferred, but it’s a responsibility he has accepted as the team’s leader. Remarkably, Mitchell has managed to increase both his usage and his efficiency, a rare feat for any player. This demonstrates not only his scoring prowess, with five 40-point games this season, but also his growing maturity and understanding of what the team requires from him on a nightly basis to win.
The Cavaliers’ Performance Plummets Without Mitchell on the Floor
The podcast highlighted Donovan Mitchell’s indispensable value with stark on- and off-court statistics. When Mitchell is off the floor, the Cavaliers are outscored by 5.6 points per 100 possessions, giving them a net rating equivalent to one of the worst teams in the league. An anecdote from the recent Orlando Magic game illustrated this dependency perfectly: Mitchell rested for just 90 seconds in the fourth quarter, and during that brief span, Orlando immediately went on a run to cut a double-digit lead to single digits. This quantifiable impact demonstrates that the team cannot function at the same level without him, underscoring his status as the primary driver of their success and raising questions about the team’s overall depth.
Jaylon Tyson’s Development is a “Game Changer” for the Franchise
The speakers identified the development of second-year wing Jaylon Tyson as arguably the single most important positive outcome for the Cavaliers this season. His emergence as a reliable, high-minute, 3-and-D player has been a “godsend” for an expensive roster needing contributions from players on team-friendly contracts. The hosts noted the irony that Tyson is delivering the exact production the organization had hoped to get from the more expensive De’Andre Hunter. By grinding his way into an essential role, Tyson has not only been critical to the team’s short-term success but has fundamentally altered the franchise’s long-term flexibility and roster construction.
Tyson’s Most Improved Player Candidacy Faces Stiff Competition
While celebrating Jaylon Tyson’s selection to the Rising Stars game and his strong case for the Most Improved Player (MIP) award, the hosts provided a broader, more nuanced perspective. They acknowledged that Tyson embodies the spirit of the award as a late first-round pick who has dramatically expanded his game, but they also pointed out that the field of candidates is unusually strong this year. Players like Denny Avdija (Portland), Jalen Johnson (Atlanta), and Keonte George (Utah) have made massive leaps, with some verging on All-Star status. This context frames Tyson’s impressive improvement within a competitive league-wide landscape, recognizing his tremendous growth while tempering local expectations for winning the award.
De’Andre Hunter’s Injury Is Being Managed with a “Long View”
Addressing trade rumors fueled by De’Andre Hunter’s recent back-to-back absences, the podcast provided an update on his status. A source indicated the team is taking a “long view” with Hunter’s knee issues, which are well-documented from his past. The current ailment is not considered a cause for major concern, but the organization is prioritizing caution and rest. This patient approach is afforded by the strong play of Jaylon Tyson and the coaching staff’s growing trust in the bench unit. The team does not feel a pressing need to rush Hunter back into the lineup, allowing him to fully recover without jeopardizing the team’s performance.
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Transcript
NOTE: This transcript was generated by artificial intelligence and could contain misspellings and errors.
Ethan Sands: What up Cavs Nation! I’m your host, Ethan Sands, and I’m back with another episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast. And we’re coming to you guys after the Cavs fourth win in a row. They defeated the Orlando Magic 114 to 98 on Monday night, and it was the second time in as many games that they’ve dismantled the Orlando Magic. Tonight we got to see another masterclass from Donovan Mitchell, who had rightfully 45 points on 15 of 25 shooting. That’s 60% from the field, 5 of 8 from deep. He also was 10 of 12 from the free throw line. Chris, what have you seen from Donovan Mitchell and his evolution when it comes to knowing what the Cavs are needed on the floor, but also just attacking where he needs to in every given moment?
Chris Fedor: I think that’s just it, Ethan. I think it’s the evolution of, of recognizing what the Cavs need. And he talked about that last year and, and part of his, what he felt like was his responsibility was to take a step back and elevate Darius Garland and Evan Mobley and give them space and give them room and give them shot attempts and give them more responsibility and freedom within the offense. And that led to Donovan taking fewer shots. That led to Donovan playing fewer minutes. And coming into this year, I think he was trying to figure out, okay, what does this group need from me? How ready is Evan Mobley to take a bigger role within the offense? How ready is Darius Garland to build on his All Star season when he comes back from. From toe surgery? So I, I think Donovan has had to carry more of a burden this year because of all the different stuff that has happened to the Cavs in the first 48 games of the season. Darius has missed an extended stretch. Evan Mobley has been sidelined. Max Drus has yet to make his debut. Sam Merrill has missed a whole bunch of games. So I think circumstances have dictated Donovan going into superhero mode. Maybe a little bit more than he has wanted, maybe a little bit more than he has preferred, but it’s his responsibility as the leader of this team and the face of this franchise to look around, see what’s happening with this basketball team and trying to figure out what it is they need from him. And in this current state that they’re in, in this state that they’ve been in for the majority of these 48, eight games at the beginning of the season, they have needed more of a prolific scorer. They have needed more of, of the, the score first mentality from, from Donovan. And while he’s doing that. He’s also making other impacts in other ways. And I think that’s the beauty of, of Donovan growing as a basketball player, that he can still go for 45, he’s capable of that. This is his fifth time going for at least 40 points this year. But he’s also doing little things, assist, steals, blocks, rebounds. He’s defending at a high enough level where he’s not a defensive liability like he was at various points in, in his career. Even he would admit that. So I just think it’s, it’s a maturity that he has, it’s an understanding that he has of, of what the Cavs have needed from him. And it’s one thing to understand that and it’s another thing to consistently deliver that. So he has that level of understanding and he’s got the skill to back it up and go deliver on, on all those things that the Cavs have needed from him.
Ethan Sands: And Chris, there have been multiple times this season where Kenny Atkinson has been like, what will we have done without Donovan Mitchell? And it felt like tonight was one of those nights again because the Cavs lost the possession game 94 to 79 in favor of the Orlando Magic. The Cavs also had 14 turnovers. They lost the offensive rebounding battle 13, 7. They allowed the Orlando matted to make 11 threes, albeit they did miss a lot of open looks. When they went 11 of 39. It felt like, thank you God. We have Donovan Mitchell situation again tonight. And I think, Chris, when we talk about the conversation of the All Star Game and how we believed he was snubbed and now there’s the situation of Giannis Antetokounmpo predicting that he’s going to be out when it comes to that All Star break, I would not be surprised. Actually, let me rephrase that. I would be shocked if, if Donovan Mitchell does not get placed into that alternate role for Giannis Antetokoun as a starter and potentially that would allow him to get what he wants, which is to play for Team World. And obviously we knew that Giannis from Greece was going to play for Team World in the All Star Game.
Chris Fedor: I mean, to your point about where the Cavs would be without Donovan Mitchell, just look at the fourth quarter. It was around the seven minute mark when Kenny Atkinson tried to take Donovan Mitchell out for just a brief rest and then he was going to go back to him. Based on how the game continued to unfold and the minute that Donovan went off the floor, Orlando started to make a run and cut it into the Lead and got it into single digits from double digits, and Donovan got, I think, a 90 second rest right around there. So we have seen it throughout the course of this season that the Cavs just cannot function to the same level when Donovan is off the floor. They have needed everything that he has given them this year. They have needed the best version of Donovan Mitchell, and the Cavs are getting the best version of Donovan Mitchell on an almost nightly basis. That is what an All Star looks like. That is what an MVP candidate looks like. And he’ll be the first one to say it. That’s his responsibility. That’s why he’s here. That’s why he gets paid what he does. That’s why he has the resume that he does. That’s why he’s on the commercials and the billboards and all those different things. That’s why after big games, he’s the one that typically gets interviewed. So he shoulders a heavy burden. It’s a star’s burden, but it’s never been too much for him, and he continues to be such a great difference maker for this organization. What he means for Jaylon Tyson, what he means for Evan Mobley, what he means for Darius Garland, and we’ve had so many different conversations throughout the course of this year about all the different guys that have underachieved this year based on the standards that they set for themselves coming in. Donovan Mitchell somehow, some way through 48 games this year, has overachieved. And that’s very, very difficult for an elite player to tap into a different kind of level, because at some point you’re just like, hey, like this is just who he is. He’s a perennial All Star. He’s a perennial MVP candidate at this stage of his career. What can he really add to his game to make himself better? And yet he has added a level of efficiency to his game that has benefited the Cavs, and it’s obviously benefited Donovan, and it’s exactly what the Cavs have needed with Darius in the state that he’s been in with Evan Mobley not taking the leap that so many people expected with De’Andre Hunter in the midst of one of the worst, least productive seasons of his career. So I give Donovan a ton of credit, and it’s. It’s really, really difficult for. For great players to continue to get better and better and better and take more steps as their career advances. But he has done that this year for the Cavs. They literally cannot function to the same level with him off the floor. They are a bad basketball team. When he is off the floor.
Jimmy Watkins: Yeah. And I would say, I mean, we. We can have a different conversation about how good that is for the big picture. But for right now, not only is, is it hard for stars to continue to advance their games, I would just say for any player ever of, of any role or background, what have you, it’s really, really hard to increase your workload and increase your efficiency. You pretty much, in every case, as shot attempts go up, as usage rate goes up, all that stuff, your efficiency goes down. And the Cavs are asking more of Donovan as a playmaker than they ever have with Darius missing these games. They’re asking on some nights where, I mean, Evan Mobley kind of had it for like a half tonight, but became pretty apparent, I don’t know, third quarter this game, like, Donovan’s going to have to score 40 for the Cavs to be able to win this game. And their defense kicked in a little bit stronger. The defense is Orlando Magic’s broken offense. We can have that conversation the other day, too. But, like, he came through and we talked so much last year about his leadership style and the way he empowered people, and we’ve talked about this a lot in the last week. I think this is another victory lap for Donovan as a leader because we have been kind of sort of shaking him metaphorically on this show, him and Kenny and the Cavs leadership at large saying, hey, we love. We love that you’re the gregarious superstar. We love that you are the highest paid player on the team that can relate to rookie contract Jaylon Tyson. They’re. They’re besties up there at the podium tonight. But, like, at what point do you need to change your approach to maybe get more out of this team? Because we’re not seeing the results and Donovan would just be patient, take a breath. I was looking at that with a skeptical eye. Now we’re starting to see it pay off. We’re starting to see it pay off with these young guys. And the Cavs are turning something of a corner here, I think. I think they’re figuring some stuff out. They certainly don’t look like the team they were last year, but they’re starting to. 11 out of 15. Is 11 out of 15, man, that’s. That’s impressive. Even more impressive given all the stuff that they have going on. And the one constant in all of this is Donovan holding them together. I don’t think he’s ever been the problem this season. He’s always been the solution, and that. That has transferred across all of their 28 wins this year.
Chris Fedor: We’ll put this in perspective. The Cavs are being outscored by 5.6 points per 100 possessions in the minutes with Donovan off the floor. To put that in perspective, that is the equivalent of the New Orleans Pelicans. So when Donovan’s off the floor, the Cavs play and act like the New Orleans Pelicans, which you don’t want. They’re the worst team in the Western Conference. So it just shows you the impact that he has at both ends of the floor and how much he tends to dictate terms for the Cavs. And I do think there probably is a bigger picture conversation about what does that mean and how big of a deal is that. Those are Giannis like numbers. Those are Jokic like numbers. And it usually isn’t the best thing for one player to be that. That much of a factor in how a team performs. But I think, to your point, Jimmy, it speaks more to just how brilliant Donovan is and. And the steps that. That he has taken to. To elevate his game even more this year. There’s. There’s so many times where you look at the Cavs and you’re just like, this would be a loss without this guy, and he just, like, he has a will to win, and he doesn’t want any kind of slippage. He doesn’t want any kind of substandard play. Like, there are certain guys where you think, like, okay, it’s the fourth quarter and a team’s down by like, 19, like, whatever. Donovan’s looking like a guy that’s saying, give me the ball, get us back in this game, somehow, some way. I’ll find a way. And I think Evan Mobley talked about it in the locker room after the game. And for the Cavs in the current state that they’re in, the how has kind of taken a little bit of a backseat, and it’s just about, let’s stack wins, let’s stack performances, and let’s see where that leads us. And right now, they’re doing that four straight six of the last seven, some really quality wins against some pretty good opponents. It’s hard to look at the Cavs during this stretch, this turnaround stretch that they’ve had and say, and be too nitpicky about the way that they’re playing or how they’re going about these wins.
Ethan Sands: Kenny Atkinson said after the game, I can’t imagine he’s not a top three player in this league.
Chris Fedor: Oh, he’s not. The fact that we don’t have to. We, we don’t have to get carried away. He’s not, it’s okay to say he’s not. Like, there are great players and like we have to rank guys. And it’s unfortunate. And it’s the same thing when it comes to MVP voting. You only get five votes. You only get five slots. So it’s like a great player, a worthy player, a deserving player is going to be off your ballot. He’s. He’s not a top three player. I mean, Jokic is different. Giannis is different. Right. Shea is different. Donovan can become a top three player when he wins a championship. Donovan can become a top three player when he leads his team out of the second round of the play. Donovan knows that he’s not a top three player. We, we don’t have to go overboard.
Ethan Sands: He also then said he’s not in the MVP conversation. That’s kind of mind boggling to me. Also, you referenced Evan Mobley, Chris and I thought it was funny how when asked about Donovan and his performance tonight, Evan was like, it’s Donovan Mitchell. That’s what he realized. Then when asked about LeBron James and his impact on the city and how he is still doing what he does at 41 years old, Evan Mobley had kind of the same response. It’s LeBron James. It’s what he does. And I just put those two things together and I thought it was kind of interesting when you look at the trajectory of Donovan Mitchell and his impact on this franchise, but also what kind of Jimmy was saying and potentially him looking like Prophet. Because we talk a lot about the gritty wins, the change of mindset of this team, the importance of how that can maybe change the outlook of a playoff series because of the physicality, the mindset, the mental toughness that’s required, all these things. But those are all things that are going to come in the future. Obviously, as we know, Donovan Mitchell doesn’t necessarily care too much about individual accolades, but he will hype up his teammates when they’re in the running for them. And one of those teammates tonight in particular was Jaylon Tyson. Jaylon Tyson was announced before the game tonight against the Orlando Magic as making it into the Rising Stars game in LA ahead of the All Star Game, a part of All Star Weekend, which is huge. He was a sophomore and as Kenny Atkinson has mentioned, Donovan Mitchell has mentioned Jaylon Tyson even said it today. It’s basically his rookie season because of the lack of minutes, the lack of opportunities that he was given his rookie season. But Then changing that and showing what he’s been able to do, what he’s been capable of this season. And the minutes Kenny Atkinson talked about, not expecting to need 30 plus minutes from Jaylon Tyson a night this season. And I think Jaylon is not only rightfully deserving of being in that game, but. But we continue to have the conversation about him as most improved player of the year because of him being a number 20 overall selection, him being in his second season, what that means, I’m curious to you guys. One, how do you feel about the rising stars and the players that were listed on that. But also where Jaylon Tyson should sit in end of season awards, especially when it comes to mip.
Chris Fedor: I definitely think he deserves consideration. There’s no doubt about that. I mean the, the leap that he has made. He has become one of the most prolific three point shooters in the entire NBA. His points per game, that has risen more so than any other player. And they’re based on certain parameters as well. But I mean to raise your points by 10 a game, yes, some of it’s opportunity, some of it is a bigger opportunity and taking advantage of the opportunities that are given to him. But the other part of it is, you know, doing the most with those opportunities and showing that you deserve them and continuing to play at a high enough level where you continue to get those opportunities. So for him to have his ninth straight double figure game, his third 30th double figure game of the season tonight, almost a double double. He guards the opponent’s best player. He picks up guys, full court. Look, there are a lot of dudes that are in this most improved conversation. Denny Avdia was a cast off from the Washington Wizards and now he’s like a walking triple double for the Portland Trailblazers. Yeah, he was a top 10 pick but he was like nothing early in his career with the Washington Wizards. Now he’s a walking triple double and Portland can’t play well without him. He missed tonight’s game and they were down 29 to 9 in the first quarter. Jalen Johnson has gone from late first round pick to. He’s probably going to be an all star reserve. It’s massive leap. He might turn into the face of the Atlanta Hawks as they move forward and they start this new phase of of their franchise. Without Trey Young, that might become Jalen Johnson. That’s a pretty big leap. That’s the definition of improvement, right? He’s also a walking triple double. Keonte George of the Utah Jazz, he might be an all Star this year. Did anybody see that coming? Did anybody expect that kind of improvement from him? So Jaylon Duran is no longer like just this, this dunk guy or this lob threat. He’s doing a little bit more with his game. So there are a bunch of diff. Ryan Rollins, where did he come from? He’s become a staple of the every night rotation. The Bucks are terrible, but Ryan Rollins goes from second round pick out of the rotation, very similar to Jaylon Tyson to a guy who’s starting games for the Milwaukee Bucks and having some big games as well. So all I’m saying is that we’re here in Cleveland. Sometimes we live in this bubble and we wrap our arms around the guy who’s ours and we just assume that nobody else is doing what he is. And taking nothing away from Jaylen Tyson, he’s been great. He deserves to be in that conversation. But there are a bunch of worthy recipients this year and it’s a little bit trickier than usual because most of the time you just take these top five picks, top four picks who are supposed to become things that they haven’t become yet, and then they do become those things and like All Stars and stuff like that, and you’re just like, hey, there’s the improvement that we all expected. Let’s give this guy most improved player. This year’s a little bit different with, with some of these guys, but Jaylon definitely has a case and we talk all the time about the development of this organization, the trajectory of this organization. Jaylon Tyson has been a godsend and he changes things both in the short term and in the long term when it comes to this organization by being this 3 and D playoff ready, or at least they believe playoff ready, heavy minute guy. Like they traded for De’Andre Hunter to B Jaylon Tyson and he hasn’t been, he’s having the year that so many people thought De’Andre Hunter would have. Like, these are the kinds of guys that really change things for you from an organizational perspective when you’re a team in the second apron, when you’re the most costly roster and you need to have these kinds of hits, these guys on rookie scale, team friendly contracts that become big time contributors for you. And that’s what he has become.
Jimmy Watkins: Yeah, I do think that sometimes the most improved player award is just the fulfill your potential award. Congratulations, former lottery pick on finally, by the way, former lottery pick who was brought to the NBA at like 18 years old. Now you’re 21 and you’re so much better. Wow, how did this happen? We have to give you an award after you’ve been awarded trophies your entire life for being talented. Here’s another one for fulfill for cashing in your talent.
Chris Fedor: Good job.
Jimmy Watkins: Jaylon Tyson is not that Jaylon Tyson came in. This is a dude who played a lot of college basketball at a bunch of different schools and grinded his way into the first round, grinded his way into the Cavs rotation this year and has grinded his skill set to the point where it is now he is he I think he embodies this award much more than a lot of other first to second year jump guys back into the first round of the Cavs even this year, knowing, anticipating that they were going to give him more minutes. They no one saw this coming with the Cavs. That being said, what does it mean to be in the conversation for an award? Like what do you like, should Jaylon Tyson be in the con? Like, is Jaylon Tyson a better most improved candidate than Denny Abia? No, he’s not. Sorry, he’s just not. But the leap that Denny Abia has made is much more difficult. Even if we like Danny Abdia’s leap started after the Wizards traded him to the Blazers. Like this has been a multi season occurrence. But Denny Audrey is like a straight up star now and so his climb, he has improved much more than J, than Jaylon Tyson has. Keonte George, I would say a similar thing, not quite to the same level. Him and Jalen Johnson. Jalen Johnson might be there, it might like he’s more on the Denny AVD level. But both of those guys are in different stratospheres as players, as J as Jaylon Tyson. And they started where Jaylon Tyson is essentially. Keonte George said on Zach’s podcast recently that Will Hardy told him, if I had to give you, if I had to decide right now about giving you extension, I don’t think I’d recommend it. Now he’s an All Star. Now he’s an All Star. So it’s levels to this and I do think that for every and I’ll bring Donovan into this too, like Donovan in the MVP conversation, would it really make you happier if you saw him getting more fourth and fifth place votes on ballots or would you just be mad that he’s not third or second or first? And I will acknowledge, I think the national media writ large does have a bias toward the players that we see more often, especially for the people whose job it is to watch 30 basketball teams every night. Those people are probably going to gravitate towards the players who are more readily available on their television screens. Even though we live in the league pass era now and everyone can watch any game. Like Jaylon Brunson getting a nod over Donovan Mitchell on all Star team. Is that a little bit of market size bias? Sure. Can we also all admit the rest of us who watch Donovan Mitchell every night and maybe don’t watch as much Jaylon Brunson as we do Donovan Mitchell? Maybe there’s a bias in that direction as well. I think two things can be true here. And again, I would just say that, like, I don’t understand why Donovan Mitchell can’t just be awesome and everyone’s cool with that. He has to be as awesome as you say he is, and everyone else has to think he’s exactly that awesome. Like, can’t you just be grateful that Donovan Mitchell’s on your basketball team? And can’t we just draw it at that? Like, I feel like people are just looking for reasons to get upset sometimes.
Ethan Sands: But I do think that these two guys, the chemistry that they’ve created and pushing each other, has been vital for both of them, right? Because I think Jaylon Tyson pushes Donovan Mitchell because Jayla Tyson has a motor that does not quit. And you see that on a nightly basis. And that forces players around him to kind of want to play with that same level of intensity and not necessarily playing for spurts like guys like Craig Porter Jr. Or Naquan Tomlin or whoever you want to go to. Like, Jaylon’s out there for the same length as Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley. He’s still playing with that same kind of grip. And Donovan, obviously, on and off the court, is pushing Jaylon Tyson to be the player that he wants to be. Right? And Jaylon talked about after tonight’s game, like, having goals for himself, wanting to be an all Star, wanting to get to where you guys say Keante George or Jalen Johnson or Denny Advia could be this season, right? And obviously, this is only Jaylon Tyson’s second season in the NBA, and Donovan Mitchell recognizes that and the sponge that he is this earlier into his NBA career and what he’s had to go through to get to this point, right? Because as Jimmy mentioned, we know Jaylon Tyson not only played eight games in Texas his freshman year, then went to Texas Tech, had to deal with some racial stuff, and then left there to go to California and then kind of revitalize his basketball love and his career from there. I think Kenny Atkinson saying that, like, credit to Kobe Altman that. Cause I wasn’t one Watching him at college credit to Jaylon Tyson for putting in the work is telling because you get to see how much his drive has driven himself, but also the people around him.
Chris Fedor: Yeah, I’ll throw another guy in there. How about Cam Spencer of the Memphis Grizzlies? What Was he the 53rd pick of last year’s draft? He went from like four points a game to close to 12 in 14 sits tonight for the Grizzlies. Like he’s averaging nearly six a game in a sometimes starter role for the Grizzlies. He probably wouldn’t be doing that if Ty Jerome didn’t have the worst calf injury known to man. But that’s the situation and he’s taking who the hell is Cam Spencer? Nobody knew who Cam Spencer was coming into this year, so I just think there are lots of guys throughout the course of the NBA that do make improvements and Jaylon being one of them. He deserves a ton of credit for it. He deserves to be a rising star. He’s getting 30 plus minutes a night. Kenny can’t take him off the floor. The trust that he has built with Jaylon, the confidence that he instills in Jaylon, the confidence that Jaylon has as well. I think the Cavs, whether Jaylon wins most improved or not, the Cavs are thrilled about his development. And the fact that he has developed as rapidly as he has is a complete and utter game changer for this organization. I would say that of everything that has happened in the first 48 games this year for the Cavs, nothing has been more important than the development of Jaylon Tyson.
Ethan Sands: Only thing I’m going to say to that is I knew of Pat and Cam Spencer because they are from Maryland and they went to a school up.
Chris Fedor: The street from me. Well, that’s cheating.
Ethan Sands: Sorry. Not sorry.
Jimmy Watkins: Perhaps a cliffhanger for a discussion later in the week. If Jaylon Tyson is who De’Andre Hunter is supposed to be, then what does that mean for one? De’Andre Hunter. That’s the thought I would leave people on.
Chris Fedor: So I will say something about De’Andre because the conspiracy theorists are out right now. When De’Andre has missed back to back games. They are just waiting for him to get traded. They assumed he was getting traded on Saturday when he didn’t play. I’m told that the Cavs are taking a long view when it comes to De’Andre. He has had knee troubles in the past. They are well documented. This isn’t one that they think is worth getting concerned about, but they clearly want to give him time to to rest it a little bit. These last couple of games have have been good for him from what I understand. Don’t know if he’s going to play Wednesday against the Lakers, but it’s not something that the Cavs are overly concerned about. They’re just trying to be as smart as possible when it comes to managing this injury. And because Jaylon Tyson has played as well as he has, because Kenny Atkinson has more belief in his bench, his second unit, I don’t think they feel a necessity to force him back into the lineup until he feels like his knee is fully ready to go.
Ethan Sands: Alrighty. Well, the Cavs take on the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, bringing back LeBron James and what could be his last showcase in Cleveland. And there’s so much on that bone. We’re going to have an entire podcast about that tomorrow as we lead into it. Maybe we answer some questions from subtexters as we go along as well. But with all that being said, that’ll wrap up today’s episode of the Wine and Gold Talk podcast. But remember to become a Cavs insider and interact with Chris, me and Jimmy by subscribing to Subtext. Want to send in your questions for tomorrow or maybe a later time this week? This is the only way to do so, so sign up for a 14 day free trial or visit cleveland.com cabs and click on the blue bar at the top of the page. If you don’t like it, that’s fine. All you have to do is text the word stop. It’s easy, but we can tell you that the people who sign up stick around because this is the best way to get insider coverage on the Cavs from me, Chris and Jimmy. This isn’t just our podcast, it’s your podcast. And the only way to have your voice heard is through subtext. Y’ all be safe. We out.