Donovan Mitchell is getting a strong forecast for the 2026-27 NBA season, and Bleacher Report has him landing among the league’s top scorers.
Grant Hughes projected the Cleveland Cavaliers star to finish as the NBA’s 10th-leading scorer next season, with Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic sitting atop the scoring race once again.
In Hughes’ view, Cleveland’s evolving offense won’t knock Mitchell out of his usual rhythm. He pointed to Peyton Watson’s “potential as an on-ball weapon” as a plus for a title-chasing Cavaliers team, while stressing that it won’t cut into Mitchell’s role as the primary option.
"Peyton Watson's potential as an on-ball weapon is purely additive for the title-chasing Cleveland Cavaliers," Hughes wrote. "It's not going to chip away at Donovan Mitchell's first-option reps.
Last year's 27.9 points per game might still be out of reach if Watson eats up some possessions, or if Evan Mobley takes another step as a creator. But Mitchell has topped 24.0 points per game every year since 2019-20 and feels highly likely to do so again.
"Remember, if guys like Watson and Mobley (and James Harden) are dangerous enough to command more defensive attention, Mitchell could benefit. He shot 40.7 percent on catch-and-shoot threes during the regular season but attempted just 231 such shots, ranking outside the league's top 75.
If defenses have to account for other threats, that number could rise along with Mitchell's scoring efficiency. If he loses anything in volume, that should make up for it."
Mitchell has been central to Cleveland since the team acquired him from the Utah Jazz in 2022. In a Cavaliers uniform, he’s averaging 26.7 points per game in the regular season and 27.3 points per game in the playoffs.
Even after the New York Knicks swept Mitchell and the Cavaliers in the conference finals, Cleveland stayed committed to its star, handing him a four-year, $273 million maximum contract extension this offseason.
That deal only adds to the expectation around what comes next in Cleveland.
In Other News...
Cavs Have A Rookie Worth Watching In This Rotation Battle
The Cavaliers rotation questions this fall are not just about the veterans who are already known quantities. With Peyton Watson coming in via trade and Meleek Thomas added with the 34th pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, Cleveland has at least one rookie who made a real push to be part of the conversation after a strong Summer League showing.
Thomas averaged 27.3 points there and flashed the kind of scoring and shooting that can get a young guard noticed quickly, especially on a roster that will spend the preseason sorting out roles. The first chances to see where he fits come October 8, when the Cavs open preseason play against the Celtics and then the Magic, and that early window should tell a lot about how close he is to cracking the rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Donovan Mitchell Just Raised The Stakes For Evan Mobley
Evan Mobley already checked off plenty of the boxes Cleveland had in mind for him last season, turning a major step forward into Defensive Player of the Year honors, an All-Star nod and an All-NBA selection. Even with a bumpier 2026 regular season, he still mattered when the games got bigger, helping the Cavaliers reach the conference finals and reminding everyone why his two-way presence is so central to what they want to build.
Donovan Mitchell has noticed, and he sounds like a star who expects Mobleys next step to be more than just maintaining. His confidence in Mobleys growth puts a sharper edge on this season for the young big man, because now the question is not whether he can be productive, but whether he can firmly establish himself as Clevelands co-star. For a team trying to stay on the contender track, that kind of internal progression matters almost as much as anything that happens on the scoreboard. [Read more 🡒]