Cavs' Donovan Mitchell Wants to Be Face of NBA: I Set That Goal 'A Long Time Ago'

When he was a 20-year-old rookie, Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell wrote down his goals, one of which was to become the face of the NBA.

Per Mitchell, that goal hasn't changed as the now seven-year veteran embarks on a playoff run with the No. 4 seed Cavs.

"I can sit here and tell you that I want to be one of the faces of the NBA, if not the face, but I've got to go out there and do it. I don't think of it as pressure," he said in an exclusive interview with Chris Fedor of cleveland.com. "That's the goal I set a long time ago.

"Kobe Bryant said something like, 'You set a goal with yourself and don't negotiate. If you're going to be a man of your word, and that's what you want out of your career, then that's what you work for and that's what you put in all that time to become.' That's my mindset."

Mitchell isn't the face of the NBA, but he's a fantastic player who has made the All-Star Game five years running. He also just made an All-NBA team for the first time, earning second-team honors in 2023.

Ultimately, Mitchell is a cut below the league's elite talents, and being the face of the NBA is something he more than likely won't realize.

At the same time, why wouldn't an NBA player want to have lofty goals? Professional athletes are uber-competitive by nature and want to be the best in the game. It makes sense that he still has that goal, which was within a list made when he was a rookie with the Utah Jazz. Then-assistant Johnnie Bryant, who Mitchell called his "big brother," asked him to write down his goals.

"He said, 'Write down your goals and bring them to me.'" Mitchell said to Fedor. "So, I told him all my goals and where I wanted to be. He told me when he was coaching me in Utah that he was going to hold me to those standards no matter what I said and no matter how I was feeling. He told me that I needed to hold myself to them as well."

Winning an NBA championship would certainly help Mitchell reach his goal. He's had his shining moments in the playoffs, but team success has more or less eluded him thus far, with just two playoff series wins on his resume.

That could potentially change this year with the Cavs embarking on another playoff run. They'll get going starting Saturday in Cleveland.