Donovan Mitchell Steals The Show Against LeBron James's Lakers
When the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Donovan Mitchell from the Utah Jazz, the organization hoped it was getting a game changer who could accelerate the Wine and Gold to the next level of their rebuild.
Playing in the same building LeBron James helped make famous with it's fire-fueled pyrotechnics and Ahmaad Crump led introductions, Mitchell made the most of his opportunity against King James' Lakers on Sunday night.
"I grew up watching him here. The ovation, it really hit for me, like a full circle moment," Mitchell said of a video tribute played for James in the first quarter. "I kind of sat there on the the stanchion or whatever and just kind of just watched the reception he got. It's incredible."
Mitchell has been outspoken about his Cavalier fandom as a child. He posted pictures on social media wearing a Wine and Gold jersey. Hearing chants of M-V-P at times this season as he's racked up more than a dozen 30-point nights, it's all come full circle now as the Cavs' unquestioned closer.
In perhaps his finest outing as a Cavaliers, Mitchell's 43-point outburst led the Cavaliers to a 116-102 win over the Lakers and earn the season sweep. He added six rebounds and five assist as the Cavs ran their home record to 11-1.
"You allow yourself to be a part of the moment, but understand that, you can't let that deter you, you know, take you away from getting a stop, boxing out, going to rebound, being able to play in different situation," Mitchell said of playing amidst the spectacle that James star brings anytime he returns to Northeast Ohio.
But the Cavs acquired Mitchell to be their new star, specifically for night's like this. As this young team looks to work build toward contention, Mitchell provides veteran leadership that's invaluable.
And despite being soft spoken and sporting his signature smile and circular-shaped sunglasses, he most certainly give this Cavs team an attitude.
Look no further than his steal and dunk in the third quarter Tuesday night. With TNT in town and the spotlight squarely on Mitchell and the Cavaliers, he played the role of show-stopper.
Later in the fourth quarter, with the game tied, Mitchell got his own rebound off a miss, cutting around three Laker defenders in the paint to get an easy un-contested layup.
Two minutes later he blew right past James for an easy layup and buried a pull-up three from the top of the key in Russel Westbrook's face. Mitchell scored 17 of his game-high 43 points in crunch time during the fourth quarter.
"It doesn't matter who it is. You always want to spoil the homecoming," Mitchell said. "I think that's that's just a competitor and you always want to do that."
For a team that has admittedly struggled at times to close games out as they navigate establishing a back-court that includes Mitchell and Darius Garland, Tuesday evening Mitchell took matters into its own hands.
"Every one of them was needed, too," said head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. "He was there to stop momentum, to stop runs, to give us momentum when we needed it."
Mitchell got better as the game wore on. He continuously sunk basket after basket Whether it was a pull-up jumper, or drawing a foul in transition Mitchell scored nine if his team's final 11 points to close out the Lakers.
There's no doubting the impact that James has left on the city and Cavaliers franchise as a whole. Fans are now in a rare position to both celebrate the hometown hero who delivered on his promise to bring the city a championship, and embrace this new era of Cavaliers basketball that has ambitions of reaching LeBron-level success.
"I think there's a level of excellence that he brought to to the city and the way he's revered as an athlete," Mitchell said. "He set a standard and we just want to honestly go out there and try to win a championship."
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