The Cleveland Cavaliers are prepared to trade Donovan Mitchell if he does not agree to a contract extension this summer, according to recent reports by a pair of insiders.

Cleveland.com’s Terry Pluto and longtime NBA insider Marc Stein reported that the Cavaliers will trade Mitchell before next season if he declines an extension worth up to four years, $208 million. “They have zero intention of opening the 2024-25 season with Mitchell heading into his free agent year,” wrote Stein.

If the Cavaliers can’t get a long-term commitment from Donovan Mitchell this summer, then the Miami Heat are expected to pursue him.

From Pluto: “I’ve been told the Cavs either would sign him to an extension this summer, or trade him. They have zero intention of opening the 2024-25 season with Mitchell heading into his free agent year.”

But the Cavaliers remain confident they can re-sign Mitchell when they are allowed to begin contract negotiations after the Finals.

Cavs GM Koby Altman told reporters at a Friday news conference that they are optimistic they will get a long-term commitment from Mitchell. According to Stein, Cleveland’s decision to fire former coach J.B. Bickerstaff was motivated that it would improve their chances of retaining Mitchell.

[Related: Reported Cavs’ ask in Donovan Mitchell trade could be hard for Heat fans to accept]

So what does this mean?

While this isn’t necessarily huge news indicating whether Mitchell will be playing for the Cavaliers or another team next season, it does seem to eliminate the scenario in which the Cavs would refuse to trade him and opt to let him play out his contract.

We should know soon after the Finals (when both sides can begin negotiations on an extension) if Mitchell will be available and if the Miami Heat have a chance to land the five-time All-Star.

The Heat, along with the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers, are among the teams expected to pursue Mitchell if the Cavaliers make him available.

The Heat have young players like Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jovic and up to three first-round picks available to trade.

Donovan Mitchell.

JK. But maybe?

I’m assuming you’re talking about All-Star caliber players. If so, it’s difficult to pinpoint who will really be available and who we think could be available.

A few examples of the latter: Everyone on the Suns. Phoenix isn’t blowing this up yet, and I don’t see any of those stars asking out after one full season. I also don’t buy that LeBron James would actually leave LA, no matter where his son is drafted.

The reporting around the Paul George situation has been interesting but, even if he took meetings as a free agent, the Heat don’t have the cap space to sign him and it would be tremendously difficult to acquire him via sign-and-trade because of their position against the second tax apron.

Zach LaVine is still available but I don’t see the Heat going in that direction.

Brandon Ingram almost certainly won’t be back with the Pelicans, and I do think he’s gettable. What would New Orleans say to an offer of Tyler Herro, Nikola Jovic and two first-round picks?

The concern with Ingram is that he’s injury-prone – something Pat Riley made clear he wants to avoid – and thrives in the same mid-range area on offense as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. It’s not a great fit, and I’m not sure he’s the guy the Heat want to go all-in on.

One of the Hawks guards is almost surely getting traded this summer. Atlanta asked for a lot for Dejounte Murray at the trade deadline and didn’t get it, but then Murray went on to average 24.5 points on 45% shooting (36% on 3s), 8.7 assists, 5.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals after the All-Star break. Will that stretch motivate teams to offer more for Murray this summer?

Then there’s Trae Young. The Lakers are the team most often linked to Young and he’d be a good fit there. You could talk me into the fit in Miami. Young might be the best pick-and-roll facilitator in the league, is a willing shooter, and would immediately turn the Heat’s offense into a top-15 outfit (if not better with some good shooting). But defense is a concern and so is his reputation. Also, I’m skeptical that the Hawks would want to trade their current franchise player within the division if all things are equal.

Which brings us back to Mitchell. The word out of Cleveland is that the Cavs are increasingly confident that they can sign him to an extension this summer. Some of that is surely posturing by the Cavs – but how much, exactly? If Mitchell tells the front office he won’t re-sign, they’ll have no choice but to at least explore the trade market. Mitchell, because he can be a free agent next summer, has some say in where he ends up. The prevailing thought is that he’d be willing to sign long-term in Miami. Then it comes down to whether the Cavaliers are interested in what the Heat can offer in a trade.

So, sorry, but the answer is Mitchell.

Alright, so in a world where Mitchell does extend… What then?

The Heat can explore the other options we already covered, but those might not be ideal or realistic.

They should explore breaking up the trio of Rozier, Herro and Robinson. While all are good players, their skill sets are a bit redundant. Could the Heat move one of them to address another hole on the roster?

What would the Nets give up for Herro? Does Cameron Johnson interest the Heat? Could they ask for Dorian Finney-Smith and draft picks?

What would teams in need of spacing – such as the Bulls, Pistons, Hornets, Thunder, Jazz, etc – give up for Robinson?

Maybe all this amounts to moving deck chairs, but this roster is stale. There’s something to be said for refreshing Miami’s feng shui.

What are you getting at, Brian? A top-25 player who is 32 years old? So you’re talking about Kawhi Leonard, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Paul George and Damian Lillard.

Of that group, Kawhi, Steph and KD aren’t going anywhere. I have my doubts about LeBron leaving LA. George, as we covered, is extremely difficult for Miami to acquire. I think Lillard gives it another year in Milwaukee.

And I’m not trading Jimmy Butler just to shake things up. If the Heat trade Butler, it will have to be because they (a) don’t want to commit to the max extension and (b) Butler seeks that money elsewhere. In that case, Miami’s hands might be tied.

But in that scenario, I’d be looking to turn a Butler deal into a multi-team trade, where the Heat get assets back for Butler that they can use to trade for a star who is on Bam Adebayo’s timeline.