Donovan Mitchell doing more for resurgent Cavs by doing less: ‘It’s not easy. If it was easy, everybody would do it’

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DETROIT — Conversations in the offseason or in training camp produce the best — if not most delusional — versions of players.

The road to disappointment is often paved with good intentions, so it wasn’t a guarantee Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell was going to stay true to taking his foot off the pedal in order for the overall team to grow.

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“Everybody says they’re willing to sacrifice until it’s them,” Mitchell told Yahoo Sports recently. “Are you really, truly ready?”

Mitchell has backed up his words, and the Cavaliers have benefited. He’s taking the fewest shots since his rookie year, and his minutes are at a career low, but that’s by design more than some fall-off — per 36 minutes, his points and assists aren’t far off his career highs.

He has to toe the line between being an offensive dynamo and allowing teammates Darius Garland and Evan Mobley the space to flourish, while still actually … leading. He had to learn how to be a better leader and how to engage better. It seems to be the next step in his evolution.

“You gotta be methodical, you gotta be tactical,” Mitchell said. “Some nights, it may be under 20 shots, how are we efficient? Am I getting guys open? And how am I being the leader that’s needed while also being aggressive. It’s a line you can find, for sure.

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“It’s not easy. If it was easy, everybody would do it.”

(Amy Monks/Yahoo Sports illustration)

The result? The Cleveland Cavaliers (60-15) totaling their most wins in 15 years, with a wire-to-wire lead in the Eastern Conference and their only true adversity coming in the last couple of weeks — almost predictably, in the aftermath of a 16-game winning streak.

After a four-game losing streak, they’ve rebounded to win four of five, hitting that 60-win mark with seven games remaining. Mitchell says the Cavs are “learning,” which he doesn’t mind.

“What we want to do late game, playing through physicality, what we struggle with,” Mitchell said. “How teams are going to guard is. That’s what the second half of the season is.”

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This is certainly Garland’s…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/donovan-mitchell-doing-more-for-resurgent-cavs-by-doing-less-its-not-easy-if-it-was-easy-everybody-would-do-it-214325504.html

Author : Vincent Goodwill

Publish date : 2025-04-02 21:43:00

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