The Cleveland Cavaliers are facing a do-or-die situation when they take the court for Game 5 on Wednesday Night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. They failed to protect their home court in Game 1 of their first-round NBA playoff series against the New York Knicks, flipping the home-court advantage. After winning Game 2, they went to Madison Square Garden and fell flat on their face.
Cleveland suffered their first 20-point loss of the season in Game 3 and became the first team to fail to score 80 points in a game, losing 99-79. Game 4 things didn’t go much better for them outside of a hot start to the third quarter as they lost 102-93.
A big reason for the Cavaliers falling short in Game 4 and not trailing 3-1 in the series was the performance of Donovan Mitchell. Cleveland paid a hefty price to acquire him from the Utah Jazz last offseason with hopes of him elevating the team during times like this. But, he struggled mightily when the team needed him most.
“I played like s–t,” Mitchell told reporters after the game. “I’m the leader of this group. Everybody did their job, and I didn’t. Simple as that.”
Mitchell scored only 11 points on Sunday afternoon, shooting 5-of-18 from the field overall and 0-of-4 on 3-point attempts. He scored only one basket in the second half as the Knicks did a wonderful job of making life difficult for him by being defended by Josh Hart, Immanuel Quickley and Deuce McBride the entire game.
“I didn’t show up for my guys,” Mitchell said. “Everybody did their job. We had our faults as a group, but ultimately, I didn’t do what I was supposed to do.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers & New York Knicks Updates
Darius Garland, who had a nightmare Game 3, carried the offensive load for the Cavaliers in Game 4. He scored a team-high 23 points with 10 assists, having some success in his duel with Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson.
Ultimately, though, it was Brunson and the Knicks who got the last laugh on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. Despite having their backs up against the wall, Donovan is not lacking confidence heading into Game 5.
“I believe in myself, I believe in this group, we believe in each other,” Mitchell said. “Believe it or not, I’ve had worse playoff games, so I’ve been here before. It’s just a matter of going out there and trying to be better for my teammates.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers & New York Knicks Updates
Mitchell had been very good for the Cavaliers in the three games leading up to Sunday’s dud. He scored 38 points in Game 1, handed out 13 assists in Game 2 and in Game 3 had 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists as the only player who got it going.
If Cleveland wants any shot at getting back into this series, they need Mitchell playing at a high level. Performing in the postseason was exactly what he was brought here to do and he will have at least one more shot to redeem himself on Wednesday night.
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