College football is back and already wild, plus the Donovan Mitchell move makes so much sense for the Cavs

Happy Friday, everyone! You’ve made it through the last NFL-free week of the year, and we have a full slate of college football upcoming.

Let’s get right to it.

Good morning to everyone but especially to…

THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS…

The Cavs are ready to win right now. Donovan Mitchell is the latest and biggest piece of the puzzle. Cleveland acquired Mitchell in a blockbuster trade with the Jazz that continues Cleveland’s ascension and confirms Utah’s rebuild. Here are the details:

Cavaliers get:

Jazz get:

This is a huge, huge trade for Cleveland. Mitchell, who turns 26 next week, is an absolute star. He’s been an All-Star each of the last three seasons, and he has at least 25 points per game each of the past two seasons. For what it’s worth, the last Cavalier to average 25 points per game in a season is LeBron James. Mitchell is even better in the postseason: His career 28.3 PPG in the playoffs is sixth all-time (min. 30 games), just barely behind James.

That’s the exact type of backcourt scoring the Cavaliers need, writes NBA expert James Herbert. Credit Cleveland for even getting to a spot where it could acquire a star. In 2018-19, the Cavaliers went 19-63, tied for the second-worst record in the league. Since then, they have added…

• Darius Garland (5th overall in 2019 NBA Draft)
• Isaac Okoro (4th overall in 2020 NBA Draft)
• Evan Mobley (3rd overall in 2021 NBA Draft)
• Jarrett Allen (acquired from the Nets in the trade that sent James Harden from Houston to Brooklyn)

All of those players are 24 years old or younger and, along with Mitchell, form a strong core. While neither Garland nor Mitchell are very good defensively, the Mobley-Allen pairing protecting the rim should assuage some of those issues. Here’s how Twitter reacted to the trade. Finally, while Mitchell had long been linked to the Knicks, New York actually made the smart decision, opines NBA guru Brad Botkin.

… AND ALSO A GOOD MORNING TO RUSSELL WILSON

Broncos Country, let’s Ride… for the foreseeable future. Russell Wilson signed a five-year, $245-million extension that keeps him in Denver through 2028.

• The deal includes $165…