Time To Worry About Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers?

The Cleveland Cavaliers are 2-5 in their last seven games as the NBA Playoffs quickly approach.

Mar 31, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) during the second half against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Donovan Mitchell had a legitimate NBA MVP case heading into the All-Star Break. He was averaging career-highs in points, assists, rebounds, and steals all while his Cleveland Cavaliers flew up to the number-two seed in the Eastern Conference.

That reality feels like ages ago considering the way both Mitchell and the Cavs are playing right now. Cleveland has just a 9-13 record since the All-Star Break and have won just two of their last seven games. A pair of those losses were 30-point blowouts just to make morale worse.

Is it time to start worrying about both Mitchell and the Cavs?

Let’s start with the playing time that Mitchell has missed over the last six weeks. He’s missed time with an illness, a bone bruise in his knee, and a fractured nose. The injury that’s been the most concerning is his knee, which appears to still be affecting him.

Mitchell admitted in the middle of March that not having his knee at full health has affected his ability to drive to the rim and explode into the paint. The stats also back this statement up. 

He’s played just seven games since the All-Star Break and is averaging 16.9 points a game while shooting 37 percent from the floor and 42 percent from behind the arc. However, Mitchell has only connected on six two-pointers in the last two games. Something just looks off.

Mar 31, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) during the second half against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports / Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

The problem here is that Cleveland’s offense is so dependent on Mitchell playing at a high level. The Cavs have an offensive rating of 117.9 when he’s on the floor, but a 114.1 when he's not out there. These numbers are even more concerning if Mitchell can’t regain strength in his knee by the time the Playoffs come around. 

Mitchell knows it’s time for himself and the team to get things going. This is what he had to say following Cleveland’s 29-point loss to the Denver Nuggets:

“It can’t happen,” said Mitchell, “I can say all this now. We have to find a way to figure it out. It’s not going to linger after tonight. Have to watch the film and get back to what we do. But it can’t happen. We can all point to s---. It’s April. It’s f—--- April. We’ve got to figure it out. And we will.”

The Cavs still have seven games before the regular season comes to a close meaning there still is some time to figure it out. The alarm bells are going off, but there’s still time to figure it all out. We’ve seen what this team can do when they’re firing on all cylinders. With that, I think it’s fair we give the Cavs the benefit of the doubt and the chance to use the final week and a half to get it all together. 

The bottom line is that they have to or the Cavaliers will be faced with an offseason full of uncertainty about the core's future.