<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-darius-garland-cleveland-crippling-characteristic');   ga('set', 'title', 'Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland call attention to Cavs’ crippling characteristic');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Golden-State-Warriors-at-Cleveland-Cavaliers.jpg"><figcaption>Ken Blaze-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland call attention to Cavs’ crippling characteristic</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-07T07:06:28-08:00">December 7th, 7:06am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-07T07:06:28-08:00">December 7th, 7:06am</time><address><a href="https://spindavies.myportfolio.com/home">Spencer Davies</a>Spencer Davies has covered the NBA and the Cleveland Cavaliers as a credentialed reporter for over a decade. His work has appeared on Basketball News, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, USA Today, FOX Sports, HoopsHype, CloseUp360, FanSided, and Basketball Insiders, among others. In addition to his journalistic experience, he has been a senior editor, a digital production assistant, a social media manager, a sports radio anchor, and a producer.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cleveland Cavaliers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-aside-mental-test-cleveland-must-meet-demanding-challenge">Cleveland Cavaliers continue to take one step forward and two steps back</a>. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland wasted little time pinpointing the most maddening characteristic of the Cavs after their disheartening 99-94 loss to a Golden State Warriors team that was down nine players.</p><p>“We get down, and then we start playing,” Mitchell said in the locker room postgame. “There’s no switch to flip. Until there’s a change in that, we’re going to keep being in these positions where sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t, and we have to fix it. Until we decide on a consistent basis to be that group, we’re going to run into inconsistency… yeah.”</p><p>“Gotta play hard for 48 minutes,” Garland added. “Play with some intensity. Play with some energy.”</p><p>While Mitchell credited the short-handed Warriors — particularly <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/golden-state-warriors/warriors-news-steve-kerr-dub-pat-spencer-that-motherfer-upset-over-cavs">Pat Spencer and Quinten Post</a> — for coming to play down bodies, he knows the wine and gold have to be better.</p><p>“We’re gonna figure it out one day,” Mitchell said, exasperated. “Can’t keep getting in this position. Shouldn’t come down to it. All the things we’ve done and shown, we do it in spurts, and that’s what’s rough. We just have to figure out how to go out there on a consistent basis.”</p><p>Mitchell pointed out<a href="https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KwKB9UMzW1c" rel="noopener"> how the Cavs closed the half and started the third quarter</a>, which gave Golden State confidence. That’s not the first time that’s happened.</p><p>Remember, too, that this is a Cleveland bunch that just scored 130 points in a win over the San Antonio Spurs the night before, only to put up 94 points on a putrid 37-of-107 shooting performance from the field the next contest. Outside of Mitchell, the wine and gold went 3 of 28 from long distance.</p><p>“I mean, it’s deflating when you’re missing shots. Like, it’s deflating,” Cleveland head coach Kenny Atkinson said. “I don’t know who would be joyful in that situation. It’s just tough. I think we kept it together on the bench and [were] encouraging and [saying] keep competing. We had [24] offensive rebounds. I know a lot of that is ’cause we missed a lot of shots, but I thought, ‘We’re trying, we’re fighting.’ It’s like, we could not get over the hump.</p><p>The most perplexing aspect of this particular game was how the Cavs outrebounded Golden State by 15 and also got as many shots in the paint as they did Friday. The problem is that they made 28% below their expected field goal percentage on those easy looks.</p><p>“I’m not going to fault our effort or our spirit or any of that,” Atkinson said. “Name of the game is putting the ball in the basket at the end of the day… Got to put it in the hole.”</p><p>Even with a better offensive process and despite holding Golden State under 100 points on 38.4% shooting, the consensus takeaway was that the defense still needed improvement.</p><p>“It’s coming together, but it’s the opposite side of the ball for us,” Garland said. “Gotta bring some energy on that side of the ball. I guess it’s difficult for us. Gotta talk a little bit more, bring some energy on the defensive side of the ball.”</p><p>Mitchell believes that it starts with better communication, intensity, getting on the glass, and running the fastbreak. Garland feels like it’s as simple as energy, spirit, and “a will.”</p><p>“When you’re not making shots like that, you’ve gotta get more stops,” Atkinson said. ” It was okay-to-good, but it wasn’t great. We had a fair amount of breakdowns. We’re going for shot fakes at the rim. They weren’t effort things. They were more like focus, cognitive-like mishaps. So, we had to be more perfect on defense than we were.”</p><p>After splitting their weekend back-to-back, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-cleveland-regular-season-big-picture-focus">Cavs will have until Friday to regroup</a> before their matchup with the Washington Wizards in D.C. Sporting a middling 14-11 record, that may be what the doctor ordered.</p><p>“It’s a reset, obviously,” Mitchell said. “When we come back, we’ve gotta be rocking and ready to go.”</p><p>“It’s fixable,” Garland added. “Get some rest. Get in the gym. Create some energy for next game.”</p><p>Atkinson senses that Cleveland needs this kind of break to exhale and get some practice time.</p><p>“Schedule is gonna ease up, and we’ll get back on track,” Atkinson said. “But this is a good reset. It gives us time to get some guys healthy, right? Anytime you can buy days in the NBA, guys can heal up a little bit.”</p><p>“Use these four days and get better,” Mitchell added. “That’s it.”</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland call attention to Cavs’ crippling characteristic

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-gets-brutally-honest-ugly-loss-blazers-cleveland-scuffles');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell gets brutally honest on ugly loss to Blazers as Cleveland scuffles');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Mitchell.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell gets brutally honest on ugly loss to Blazers as Cleveland scuffles</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-04T08:43:15-08:00">December 4th, 8:43am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-04T08:43:15-08:00">December 4th, 8:43am</time><address><a>Rohan Brahmbhatt</a>Rohan Brahmbhatt is an adventure-driven sports writer, passionate footballer, mountaineer, and photojournalist. Rohan blends firsthand experience with storytelling—capturing the intensity of sport and the thrill of exploration. Whether on the field, a mountain trail, or behind the lens, he brings authentic, high-energy narratives that connect readers to the heart of the action.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cleveland Cavaliers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Cleveland Cavaliers pride themselves on toughness, defensive identity, and continuity. But after Wednesday night’s 122-110 loss to the struggling Portland Trail Blazers, the tone shifted,<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-kenny-atkinson-texted-donovan-mitchell-43-points-pacers"> and Donovan Mitchell didn’t sugarcoat it.</a></p><p>Mitchell, who finished with 33 points in the defeat, delivered a message that was equal parts blunt and measured, a reflection of growing frustration amid a critical stretch of inconsistency.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-thomas-bryant-tenacious-consolation-prize-cleveland-loss-blazers">The Cavs, now 13-10, have dropped four of their last five,</a> and Wednesday marked their first loss this season to a team with a losing record.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“Take this on the chin.” </p><p>Donovan Mitchell’s assessment of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cavs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cavs</a> right now is telling. Frustration coupled with being grounded, disappointment coupled with understanding the reality of where things currently stand and will go. Balanced as always. <a href="https://t.co/bmU7LEm8AV">pic.twitter.com/bmU7LEm8AV</a></p><p>— Spencer Davies (@SpinDavies) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpinDavies/status/1996486910332772774?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Take this on the chin,” Mitchell said postgame. “The league changes every year, teams get better, trends shift, and nothing is guaranteed. We’ve got to adjust. It’s still early, but we need to come back with urgency.”</p><p>That urgency was visibly lacking for long stretches against Portland.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-joins-stephen-curry-in-historic-nba-club-in-win-vs-pacers">Despite Mitchell and Evan Mobley combining for 56 points,</a> Mobley contributing 23 points and 10 rebounds, the Cavs struggled with defensive breakdowns and inconsistent intensity.</p><p>Portland shot 34-of-39 from the free-throw line, with Deni Avdija torching Cleveland for <a href="https://www.espn.in/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401810179" rel="noopener">27 points,</a> and reserves Caleb Love and Shaedon Sharpe adding 20 each.</p><p>For a team that ranked near the top of the league defensively a year ago, the performance was especially puzzling.</p><p>“We weren’t disciplined, and we let them dictate,” Mitchell added. “That can’t happen, not at home, not against teams we should beat.”</p><p>Cleveland entered the season with elevated expectations after last year’s playoff breakthrough. But with injuries early in the schedule and fluctuating defensive effort, consistency has been elusive.</p><p>Mitchell, however, made it clear panic isn’t part of the equation; accountability is.</p><p>“We’ll respond. We have to,” he said. “This is part of it, growth, adversity, figuring out who we are. But tonight? We take it on the chin, and we learn from it.”</p><p>For now, the Cavaliers remain a work in progress, talented, competitive, but searching for rhythm.</p><p>And as Mitchell emphasized Wednesday night, the next stretch will reveal whether this group can evolve or stall.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell gets brutally honest on ugly loss to Blazers as Cleveland scuffles

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/news/cavs-news-how-donovan-mitchell-kenny-atkinsons-unprecedented-demand-pacers-game');   ga('set', 'title', 'How Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell fulfilled Kenny Atkinson’s unprecedented demand in Pacers game');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.cavsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Donovan-Mitchell.jpg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>How Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell fulfilled Kenny Atkinson’s unprecedented demand in Pacers game</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-02T09:29:20-08:00">December 2nd, 9:29am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-02T09:29:20-08:00">December 2nd, 9:29am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson joined ClutchPoints and Cavs Nation in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cavs News</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Monday evening, the Cleveland Cavaliers picked up a much-needed road win <a href="https://cavsnation.com/news/cavs-news-shocking-loss-pacers-highlighted-insane-stat">over the Indiana Pacers</a> to end their losing streak and get back in the win column. The Cavs were led by 43 points <a href="https://cavsnation.com/news/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-sits-in-stunned-silence-heartbreaking-loss-to-celtics">from Donovan Mitchell</a> in this game, continuing his torrid pace on the 2025-26 season and helping Cleveland knock off the team that eliminated them in last year’s semifinal series.</p><p>After the game, it was revealed that his big scoring night <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-kenny-atkinson-texted-donovan-mitchell-43-points-pacers" rel="noopener">was prophesied by</a> none other than Cavs head coach Ken Atkinson.</p><p>“You’ve got to go for 40 tonight,’” Atkinson said, speaking on what he told Mitchell before the game, per Spencer Davies of ClutchPoints. “I’ve never said that to a player. ‘If you take 30 shots, I’m good with it. And if you take five or six bad ones, we’re good with it.’ I’ve never said that to him or any player, but he felt it, I felt it; we needed him tonight. Just had to get a W.”</p><p>“We’re asking a lot of him. Without him, how many wins do we have?” Atkinson added. “We have to ask ourselves that question. Everybody talks about the great players in this league; this guy is one of ’em. Top five, you could say whatever you want.”</p><p>While most pundits and fans would not have Mitchell in their top five, he’s still been hooping at an elite level for the Cavs all year, keeping the team above water even while Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley continue to perform well below expectations, and as Darius Garland goes in and out of the lineup due to injury.</p><p>In any case, next up for the Cavs is a home game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday evening. That contest is slated to begin at 7:00 pm ET.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

How Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell fulfilled Kenny Atkinson’s unprecedented demand in Pacers game

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-kenny-atkinson-texted-donovan-mitchell-43-points-pacers');   ga('set', 'title', 'What Kenny Atkinson texted Donovan Mitchell before Cavs’ skid-snapping win over Pacers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Why-Donovan-Mitchell-Kenny-Atkinson-wont-tolerate-one-major-Cavs-problem-It-cant-happen.jpg"><figcaption>Matt Krohn-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>What Kenny Atkinson texted Donovan Mitchell before Cavs’ skid-snapping win over Pacers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-01T20:46:03-08:00">December 1st, 8:46pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-01T20:46:03-08:00">December 1st, 8:46pm</time><address><a href="https://spindavies.myportfolio.com/home">Spencer Davies</a>Spencer Davies has covered the NBA and the Cleveland Cavaliers as a credentialed reporter for over a decade. His work has appeared on Basketball News, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, USA Today, FOX Sports, HoopsHype, CloseUp360, FanSided, and Basketball Insiders, among others. In addition to his journalistic experience, he has been a senior editor, a digital production assistant, a social media manager, a sports radio anchor, and a producer.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cleveland Cavaliers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Amid a three-game losing streak and going into a second night of a back-to-back on the road, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-cleveland-regular-season-big-picture-focus">Cleveland Cavaliers had to come out with a victory over the Indiana Pacers</a>. So, before the matchup, Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson sent a text to Donovan Mitchell with a message that would foreshadow his night.</p><p>“‘You’ve got to go for 40 tonight,'” Atkinson said, noting that Mitchell likely didn’t need his motivation but wanted to double down on his belief. “I’ve never said that to a player. ‘If you take 30 shots, I’m good with it. And if you take five or six bad ones, we’re good with it.’ I’ve never said that to him or any player, but he felt it, I felt it; we needed him tonight. Just had to get a W.”</p><p>Mitchell finished the game with 43 points, nine rebounds, and six assists on 16 of 27 from the field, knocking down four shots from deep to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-joins-stephen-curry-in-historic-nba-club-in-win-vs-pacers">take the league lead in total threes made with 81</a>. It was his third 40-point performance of the season and his second in the last three contests, helping lead the Cavs to a 135-119 win. Atkinson is not okay with Cleveland being so overreliant on “Superman,” as he referred to the All-Star shooting guard, but right now, “It is what it is.”</p><p>“We’re asking a lot of him. Without him, how many wins do we have?” Atkinson asked. “We have to ask ourselves that question. Everybody talks about the great players in this league; this guy is one of ’em. Top five, you could say whatever you want.”</p><p>During his typically happy-go-lucky postgame interview with Serena Winters, Mitchell was stoic and matter-of-fact, not only satisfied with a double-digit win over a team the Cavs were <a href="https://www.nba.com/game/0022500310" rel="noopener">expected to handle easily</a>. The story his eyes told after Sunday’s loss in Boston followed him Monday into Gainbridge Fieldhouse.</p><p>“Rarely is Don not jovial,” Atkinson said. “I looked at him pregame, and you knew. Almost more business-like than ever. I kind of knew we weren’t gonna lose this game. He wasn’t gonna let us lose it and did it on both ends.”</p><p>It sounds like Mitchell is done playing games. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-jaylon-tyson-cleveland-cruise-control-approach">Jaylon Tyson is right there with him</a>, too.</p><p>The Cavs are ticked off, and if that mentality can trickle down from their leader and throughout the locker room, that level of focus could be the key to getting back on track.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

What Kenny Atkinson texted Donovan Mitchell before Cavs’ skid-snapping win over Pacers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-joins-stephen-curry-in-historic-nba-club-in-win-vs-pacers');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell joins Stephen Curry in historic NBA club in win vs. Pacers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Cavs-guard-Donovan-Mitchell-45-holds-the-ball.jpg"><figcaption>© Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell joins Stephen Curry in historic NBA club in win vs. Pacers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-01T19:13:47-08:00">December 1st, 7:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-01T19:13:47-08:00">December 1st, 7:13pm</time><address><a href="https://letterboxd.com/splooshpuhrty/films/by/your-rating/">Jedd Pagaduan</a>Jedd Pagaduan is a certified Clippers and Gunners fan, which means he's a very sports-traumatized individual. He now writes about sports instead as a form of therapy.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Cleveland Cavaliers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>With the Cleveland Cavaliers being on the second night of a back-to-back on Monday, they decided to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-darius-garland-jaylon-tyson-returning-injury">give Darius Garland the night off</a> so he wouldn’t re-aggravate his toe injury troubles. This freed up Donovan Mitchell to do the bulk of the heavy lifting against a flatlining Indiana Pacers team.</p><p>Mitchell, who didn’t have the best of games on Sunday in a 117-115 loss to the Boston Celtics, bounced back in a huge way — finishing with 43 points, nine rebounds, and six assists in a convincing 135-119 win over their division rival.</p><p>At 29 years of age, Mitchell remains in the middle of his prime and is reaching heights that not too many players before him have done. In fact, the Cavs star, in his first 20 games of the season, only belongs with Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry in an exclusive club.</p><p>According to ClutchPoints NBA insider Brett Siegel, Mitchell is <a href="https://x.com/BrettSiegelNBA/status/1995689176558387577" rel="noopener">only the second</a> player in NBA history to average at least 30 points per game on over 50 percent shooting from the field while drilling 80 or more three-pointers over his first 20 games of the season, joining Curry.</p><p>Amid the Cavs’ injury troubles, the team has needed Mitchell to play at an unbelievable level. And to his credit, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/cleveland-cavaliers/cavs-news-donovan-mitchell-money-spot-career-nba-mvp">he has answered the call</a>. Cleveland may not be as good this year as they were in last year’s regular season, but make no mistake about it — they might be just as dangerous of a team, especially when Mitchell is playing like this.</p><h2><b>Cavs’ unsung heroes are stepping up</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/27449063.jpg"><figcaption>David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Mitchell might be in impressive company rubbing elbows with Curry in terms of scoring efficiency and three-point volume, but without the emergence of a few unsung heroes, the Cavs would have found it more difficult to overcome the depleted Pacers.</p><p>In particular, Jaylon Tyson, the 20th overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, appears to be a huge draft-night win for Cleveland.</p><p>Tyson recorded 27 points and 11 rebounds on a pristine 10-13 shooting night, as he has filled in admirably for Jarrett Allen, who’s currently on the mend with a finger injury.</p><p>Nae’Qwan Tomlin also continues to be a revelation, as he is a hustle guy who gets the job done for the Cavs, while Tyrese Proctor has also given his team some quality minutes off the bench.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell joins Stephen Curry in historic NBA club in win vs. Pacers

Ja Morant

Draymond Green

Jimmy Butler III

Trae Young