With Cavaliers Season On The Brink, It's Hard Not To Wonder What Could Have Been?

There was an eerie hush inside Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on Monday night prior to tip-off between the Cavaliers and Celtics. Fans in attendance came dressed in their darkest shades of wine and gold for what was presumed a Cavs funeral.

News of Donovan Mitchell being questionable with a calf injury and ultimately out for Game 4 left everyone assuming the worst. For all intents and purposes, the Cavaliers season was over before the game even tipped. Injuries had struck again – a theme of the 2023-24 campaign.

Without Mitchell and starting center Jarrett Allen though, what remained of the ravaged Cavaliers roster played an inspired brand of basketball. Darius Garland shouldered the pressures of filling Mitchell's shoes by dropping 30 points and dishing out seven assists. Evan Mobley and Caris LeVert added 19 points a piece. Max Strus finally found his shot, knocking down five threes in the first half to finish with 15 points.

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Against all odds, Cleveland scratched and clawed its way into the lead with three minutes to go in the third quarter. Later, a 15-point Celtics lead was quickly cut to seven following an 8-0 run with five minutes to go in regulation. But for every Cavaliers punch, the Celtics had a counter. Their stars, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, were stars. It was too much For Cleveland to overcome.

It was yet another effort in this series where it felt as though the Cavs can hang with the Celtics on their best day. The problem is getting four of those best days while down two key starters, one of whom hasn't played since Game 4 of the previous series, in Allen.

Now facing a 3-1 deficit, it's hard not to wonder what this series would look like if Cleveland was fully healthy. No one is this time of year, of course. Even Boston is missing one of its biggest stars in Kristaps Porzingis. As LeVert said after the game, he and his Cavs teammates try not to let their minds go there.

May 13, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) drives against Cleveland | David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

"Right now we're just staying in the present," the 6-foot-6 forward said. "Obviously sucks that we're not 100%, but I think even still, with that we had our chances tonight. I think if we had executed just a little bit better we'd have put ourselves in a better position towards the end of the game. Obviously your mind goes to [injuries] but I think it's important to stay present."

With a win-or-book your flight to Cancun Game 5 looming on Wednesday, all the Cavs can do is live in the present. Still, it's hard not to look back on these playoffs, the regular season, all of it and wonder what could be with this team.

It's hardly a secret that injuries have ominously hovered over this franchise like a dark cloud, hijacking the season at every turn. First it was Allen, out for the first five games of the season due to a an ankle injury. Then came Garland's broken jaw and Mobley's knee, which cost both players more than a month. Late in the season it was role players like Strus and Dean Wade missing extended time due to injury.

There was also Mitchell's lingering knee injury late in the regular season that kept him sidelined for 15 of the Cavs last 22 regular season games. It's been relentless. It's been deflating. Against all odds the resilient Cavaliers scraped their way to the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference and now, with the rearing their ugly head again, into the second round of the playoffs.

Year two of Mitchell came with sky high expectations back in October and to be fair to the franchise, they did make progress by advancing out of the first round and playing some tight games against a title favorite Celtics team. But when the book is written on the 2023-24 season, which may come as soon as Wednesday night, it will tell of a season marred by injuries.