Does this Eastern Conference star want to play in Los Angeles?

Donovan Mitchell could be totally subverting expectations when it comes to his basketball future.

Spence Checketts of ESPN700 in Utah shared a surprising rumor this week about the Cleveland Cavaliers star. In an appearance on the “Knicks Film School” podcast, Checketts cited a source who believes that Mitchell wants to play in Los Angeles.

“This came from a source [who] more often than not is correct and knows Donovan,” Checketts said. “He believes Donovan wants Los Angeles. He thinks he’s going to go try to be a Clipper or a Laker when LeBron [James] is gone … [That rumor] didn’t come from nobody, I’ll just put it that way.”

That would be a pretty stunning reversal of course for four-time All-Star Mitchell. Other than playing the first five seasons of his career with the Utah Jazz, he is an East Coast guy through and through. Mitchell attended college at Louisville and is a native of New York – which is why many believe he will end up with the New York Knicks. Besides the Knicks, Mitchell has been linked to a couple of other Eastern Conference teams in the past.

As it stands right now, Mitchell can become a free agent as early as summer 2025. There is a possibility that LeBron James – as well as Kawhi Leonard and Paul George for that matter – will no longer be in Los Angeles at that point. Mitchell may have dreams of filling the void.

H/T NBA Reddit