“They’re Not Superstars” — Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on Haliburton and Mitchell | ESPN - Vidéo Dailymotion

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🔥 On ESPN, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (KCP) shares his honest take on why Tyrese Haliburton and Donovan Mitchell are not yet NBA superstars. While both players have made All-Star appearances and posted impressive numbers, KCP breaks down what separates a star from a true franchise-level superstar.  In this segment, the ESPN panel reacts to KCP’s controversial comments, comparing Haliburton’s rise in Indiana and Mitchell’s leadership in Cleveland to other top-tier talents like LeBron, Curry, and Giannis.  Is KCP keeping it real — or underestimating two of the East’s top guards? Watch the full breakdown and join the heated debate.  Hashtags: #ESPN #KCP #TyreseHaliburton #DonovanMitchell #NBASuperstars #NBA2025 #Pacers #Cavaliers #NBAHotTakes #ESPNDebate  Keyword Tags (Inside Description): KCP Haliburton Mitchell take, Haliburton not a superstar, Donovan Mitchell overhyped, ESPN NBA debate 2025, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope analysis, NBA superstar standards, Haliburton Mitchell comparison, ESPN player rankings, Eastern Conference guards, NBA controversial takes

Transcript

00:00on Sportsmanlike on the ESPN app, the Sirius XM Channel 80.

00:04And if you missed it, you can catch up all four hours of the show

00:07on the Unsportsmanlike podcast, available daily wherever you get your podcasts.

00:13So Donovan Mitchell and Tyrese Halliburton are some of the best players in the NBA,

00:18as we know, Myron.

00:19Donovan Mitchell was on the Cavs team that won a lot of games this year,

00:22had a disappointing exit in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

00:26And that happened against a Indiana Pacers team led by Tyrese Halliburton,

00:31whose season got cut short in the most devastating way in the Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

00:37There's a conversation, though, about where exactly they fit into the mix

00:41among the hierarchy of NBA players.

00:44And I want you to hear from Contavious Caldwell-Pope, two-time NBA champion,

00:48who was on the Dog Talk podcast.

00:50He had this to say just about how seriously he views these two players

00:55in the superstar category.

00:58Do you categorize Halliburton as a superstar?

01:00No.

01:01That's what we're going off of.

01:02And I wouldn't even, like, build a team around Donovan Mitchell either.

01:06Why wouldn't you build one around Donovan?

01:08He's a superstar, but, like, to superstars can win me games.

01:13Can he do that consistently every night?

01:16Go out there and try to win me a game?

01:18I mean.

01:18Can he average 25, 8, and 8?

01:23Yes.

01:23Well, I don't know about 8, and 8, but I will say.

01:26Bron did his whole career.

01:28But I'm saying Donovan Mitchell is.

01:29We're talking about superstars, though.

01:31Like, we're talking about getting teams involved, getting players involved,

01:34like, going out in.

01:36Like, when my team need me to win, I'm going to go get this win.

01:39I can't do that with Donovan Mitchell.

01:41And I'm 50-50 with Halliburton because Halliburton can average 25, 8, and 8.

01:46I just, I just, I don't know.

01:47I see it.

01:48He's just not, for me, it's not, it's not, he's clutch now, but, like,

01:53consistently throughout the game, I need you to be consistent with shooting the ball,

01:58your playmaking, all that.

01:59I don't think he's, like, he's getting there.

02:01Like, he's, like, he's, but, like, it's still inconsistent.

02:05That was Contavious Caldwell-Pope on the Dog Talk podcast talking about Tyrese Halliburton

02:10of the Indiana Pacers, Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers,

02:13whether they're truly in superstar territory, he made some valid points.

02:19I mean, I think especially when it came to Halliburton there at the end saying,

02:23can you consistently do it?

02:24Because, you know, if it wasn't game one of the NBA Finals where he and the team

02:29make a thunderous comeback on the Thunder's home floor to steal that game

02:33and then steal game two, there are games where he disappeared.

02:36You can't, you can't have disappearing acts and be a superstar, Myron.

02:39Yeah, I mean, I think it's a great conversation.

02:43I blame us.

02:44You know, we have crowned far too many people as superstars in this sport.

02:49Anytime someone gets hot, anytime someone wins a title, we go, that's a superstar.

02:54I legitimately think there are only three superstars in the NBA, Steph, LeBron, and KD.

02:58For me, it's longevity, consistency.

03:00It's what they've done over the course of their careers.

03:02And then it's the spotlight as well.

03:04Like, how many people know Tyrese Halliburton and Donovan Mitchell?

03:08Yeah, it was a big run in the playoffs, but that's not superstar to me.

03:12That's a good player.

03:14So I think the real conversation is what tier is sort of Donovan Mitchell and Tyrese Halliburton in?

03:19And I think I agree.

03:21Like, are those really good players?

03:24Yes.

03:24But if you were starting a team, Courtney, I don't think they're in your top 15 players

03:31that you would pick in the NBA if the goal is to win a championship.

03:34But didn't Cleveland effectively do that?

03:37Didn't they build around Donovan Mitchell?

03:39Like, that's the entire reason that he's there.

03:42Because they needed somebody in the backcourt to elevate everybody around him.

03:46And we have seen that, where he's had to put that Superman cape on almost to a fault.

03:51And yes, he sometimes takes on too much of that.

03:53But I just don't...

03:55Cleveland doesn't see the logic there.

03:57They did go out and build around Donovan Mitchell.

03:59They brought in all of these pieces.

04:01Heck, even in free agency, and I know it's been a little quiet for them,

04:04the trade for Lonzo Ball and standing a coro to the Chicago Bulls,

04:08that's still with Donovan Mitchell in mind

04:11and making sure that their best player is going to be playing at his best

04:15so that everybody else can play at their best.

04:17I just...

04:17I don't buy that, like, Donovan Mitchell wasn't the player that you built around

04:21when we've already seen Cleveland go out and do that.

04:24But where'd they go, Courtney?

04:26I mean, that has to be a part of the conversation as well.

04:28They're measured.

04:29They...

04:29I mean, I honestly think that they got a little too big for their britches

04:32in that second round after they were untested completely against Miami.

04:37I think it was an inexperienced team that got embarrassed and got their butts kicked.

04:42I don't think it's a talent issue in Cleveland.

04:45I think it was just a matter of, like, just lackadaisical play

04:48and, frankly, like, a want-to, which I know is...

04:52It's not an excuse, but that's how I see it.

04:54But we don't do that with superstars, Courtney.

04:56We don't say, well, you know, they had this issue and that issue.

05:00And I think, to me, that's what superstar is to me.

05:02When we talk about LeBron instead of KD, we say, I don't care what's going on.

05:06You're supposed to compete for a championship.

05:08That hasn't happened yet for Donovan Mitchell.

05:10I think Donovan Mitchell is a great player.

05:12Let me be clear on that.

05:13But I can understand how someone would say there are a number of players around the NBA

05:18that you would choose over him if the idea was to build a championship contender.

05:22I think Donovan Mitchell needs more help to win a championship than some of those other stars.

05:27Good player, very good player, definitely not a superstar at this stage in his career.

05:32This speaks to a bigger conversation in sports,

05:35and it's why I wanted to have this topic on the rundown today,

05:38because we do this all the time in every...

05:43Like, it fits in with our firework conversation.

05:45Like, we do this too often.

05:47There's... I agree with you.

05:49There's three superstar players right now in the NBA, whether it's KD, the greatest closer,

05:54the best scorer currently in the NBA, Stephen Curry, his resume speaks for itself,

05:58and, of course, LeBron James in that category.

06:00Can you throw maybe one or two others in there?

06:03Maybe it is a Jason Tatum, somebody who's won a championship,

06:06somebody who has been an all...

06:08You know, a first-team, all-NBA player.

06:10Maybe it's Luka Doncic.

06:11You've got to draw the line somewhere,

06:13because there is a true difference between...

06:16Like, superstar falls into that category of elite,

06:20which the one thing I took, like, one of my biggest things I took

06:22from being on Around the Horn for three years,

06:25elite was one of our banned words.

06:26So if you said it, if you fit it into a conversation,

06:28you were losing points.

06:30The reason we did that is it because...

06:32It's because it became hyperbolic conversation,

06:35where you're throwing everybody into the superstar realm.

06:39Like, we use this in football all the time,

06:40like, generational, right?

06:42Generational talent.

06:43How many times have the quarterbacks

06:44that have been taken in the first round

06:46been listed as generational talents,

06:47and how many of them actually pan out, right?

06:49Like, it's kind of the same thing.

06:51I just...

06:51It's an overused phrase

06:53when saying that somebody is really, really good,

06:57great even, would suffice

07:00instead of calling them a superstar,

07:02because superstar is rare.

07:03That's the reason that word means so much,

07:06and you dilute it when, I think,

07:08you throw everybody in there.

07:09So I don't think Donovan Mitchell and Tyrese Halliburton

07:12are superstars yet.

07:13Could be.

07:14And that's okay.

07:17Yeah.

07:17No, I'm with you on that.

07:18I think that it's in due time.

07:20They could get there.

07:21We'll just have to see.

07:22All right.

07:22On Sportsmanlike, presented by Progressive Insurance,

07:25Courtney Cronin, Myron Medcalf,

07:26coming up next.

07:28The AFC North and the NFL.

“They’re Not Superstars” — Kentavious Caldwell-Pope on Haliburton and Mitchell | ESPN

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