Why Donovan Mitchell Must Be a More Willing Playmaker for the Cavs Next Year

The Cleveland Cavaliers will only go as far as their stars take them. That much is for certain. But the best leaders, both on and off the court, know when it's time to take a step a step back and allow others to flourish.

They have this preternatural sense of when it's most opportune and most beneficial to something's success to buy-in to a one-for-all mindset rather than an all-for-one state of mind. Striking that balance can make or break even the most talented of hoopers.

For Donovan Mitchell, finding that balance has seemed like a constant tug of war. There are moments in which he genuinely appears to have a handle on making plays for others and others in which he seems far too aggressive in pursuing his own looks. There is a little grey area in there as teammates do have to make shots once he's passed them the rock. But if Cleveland is to get to the promised land, Mitchell must learn to trust his teammates more.

To me, that starts and ends with learning to be more comfortable without the ball in his hands, which might be a tall order for a player who has never finished with a usage rate below 32.2% while with Cleveland. That said, there are enough context clues to lead one to the belief that Mitchell could be an extremely viable off-ball outlet.

For instance, Spida scored 1.54 PPP as a cutter in 2025-26, converted on a very efficient 77.4% on those attempts. This indicates that he is more than capable of moving without the ball in his hands. It's the volume that needs work as he could benefit from a higher amount of off-ball possessions. He only attempted 0.5 FGA as a cutter which was 8th on the team. As a result, he placed within the 49th percentile in Cuts Per 75 Possessions.

Still though, he did place within the 72nd percentile in Movement Points Per 75 Possessions. We know that he is capable of providing that particular skillset to the team, it's just underutilized.

We need more off-ball movement from Donovan Mitchell in 2026-27. Especially after the acquisition of Peyton Watson and the team's willingness to place the ball in Mobley's hands more. pic.twitter.com/MOW2NKSpzV
— Its Cavalier (@ItsCavalier_Pod) September 8, 2026

And when on the ball, Mitchell must not only trust in his teammates more frequently to knock down shots on the perimeter, he must be more willing to set up his bigs when driving down hill. The acquistion of Peyton Watson will only serve to reinforce these statements.

Mitchell finished within the 95th percentile in Drives Per 75 Possessions. His 18.5 drives per game were 14th in the league this past season. He remains a near-constant threat to attack the rim. That said, he isn't using his immense gravity to generate assists for others, placing within the 50th percentile in Drive Assist Rate at 8.28%.

The thing is, we've seen him make the types of passes that could elevate this number. From drive-and-kicks to dump-offs, Mitchell is a capable enough facilitator, especially on the move. This leads me to believe that it's more of a processing and mentality issue than a mechanical or skill-based one.

The Lousiville product is quite productive when looking to score out of the Pick-and-Roll, scoring roughly 1.02 points per possession as a Pick-and-Roll ball-handler. His recognition or awareness out of said screens could definitely be better though.

Watson's addition could mean less on-ball reps for Mitchell, which should force him to operate off the rock a little more. This forced deferral wouldn't be without it's benefits though, at least for the team as a whole. Spida wield an incredible amount of off-ball gravity (94th percentile) as the defense knows it must constantly account for him whether he's attempting shots or not.

That can only serve to open more driving lanes for James Harden, or more cutting lanes for Watson, and perhaps even a few more on-ball possessions for Evan Mobley.

Mitchell has always been best with the ball in his hands but striking the proper balance is critical to the success of the team as a whole, while also having the added benefit of furthering the development of others. It might also preserve him longer. Less wear-and-tear is always a good thing.

Time will tell if he further adapts his game in the direction the team is heading in.

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