As Donovan Mitchell took the floor for the opening tipoff at Madison Square Garden, he walked over to the courtside seats to hug and dap up New York Mets star Francisco Lindor. He heard from Lindor shortly before the game that the shortstop would be in attendance.
Mitchell said on the Bally Sports Ohio broadcast that he had a lot of people in attendance for the Cavaliers–Knicks game and didn’t think he had that many since his rookie season in 2017-18. There were even people there he didn’t know would attend Sunday’s game in the mecca of basketball.
Madison Square Garden has nostalgia for Mitchell. He grew up in Elmsford, N.Y., about 25 miles from MSG. He grew up attending games, watching players and remembered fondly the organ playing in the background.
“Just coming up watching the game and just playing here, it’s always great to play back at home,” Mitchell said in the locker room on the Bally Sports broadcast after a 92-81 loss. “I’m really pissed we didn’t get the dub tonight because we were right there.”
After a summer of trade rumors that featured New York as a landing place for Mitchell before the blockbuster trade in September brought him to Cleveland, Mitchell took the floor as a Cavalier in MSG. It was the second time the Cavs have seen the Knicks this season, with the first meeting Oct. 30 in Cleveland.
This wasn’t quite the ideal homecoming, though, as Cleveland fell to 15-9 on the season. The Cavs struggled to make shots and find an offensive flow, as they shot 34.9 percent from the field and made just eight 3s. Mitchell finished with 23 points, five assists and four rebounds. He missed five of his first six shot attempts and finished the night shooting 8 of 22 from the field (36.4 percent), 2 of 11 from 3 (18.2 percent) and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line (83.3 percent).
Throw the hammer, Don 🔨🤯@spidadmitchell | #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/gGYvzak7Ki
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) December 5, 2022
Mitchell has played 22 games as a member of the Cavs. He is averaging 28.4 points per game while shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3, all career highs. He is also dishing out 4.9 assists, 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 turnovers and 1.4 steals per game.
His scoring average ranks 10th in the NBA. He’s scored 30-plus points in 12 games this season.
“This is no shot at my guys in Utah, so I don’t want the message to get misconstrued or whatever, especially on like Twitter, but I’m having fun again,” Mitchell said following the Cavs’ win over Orlando on Friday. “That’s just straight up. I’m in a situation where you go all summer and not know what’s going to happen. But I’m just having fun playing the game.
“There’s no shame in that,” Mitchell continued. “I’m not ashamed of it. I love all my guys that I’ve ever played with, but I’m just having fun with the game and a new beginning. Sometimes that is just what you need to kind of get that joy back and that jolt back. Even through the struggle, we went on a five-game losing streak, and there’s still joy within the game. That’s pretty much it.”
The Cavs recently passed the quarter mark of the season. Mitchell’s addition has been more than seamless. There’s always a question with trades of how quickly players will adjust to their new teammates and vice versa, and he has been able to do so with ease.
Ever since Mitchell stepped off the plane in Cleveland and entered training camp with a determination to fit in, he’s been able to do it. He’s built an early chemistry with his backcourt mate, Darius Garland, as well as the rest of his teammates.
Mitchell has been the scoring threat the Cavs needed at the two guard, as well as a facilitator and creator. When Garland missed time with an eye injury, Mitchell was able to move over to point guard and run the offense. He’s continued to find guys for open shots or create his own.
“I think I fit in because I filled a void,” Mitchell said in his postgame news conference in Orlando. “It’s what was needed. Darius in the backcourt did a lot last year, I’ve been saying that, and did it phenomenally well, but just kind of being in the game on the other side of the backcourt, making life easy for him and vice versa.
“It’s a comfortability thing coming into that situation, and then (coach) J.B. (Bickerstaff) going out and saying, ‘Be yourself.’ When you have the full support of your teammates and your coaches, it goes a long way. When a team trades for you, that means they see value in you and what you can possibly do. Just doing that on a nightly basis.”
Mitchell came in and instantly raised the outside expectations for the Cavs, catapulting them into the conversation at the top of the East. Cleveland is third in the Eastern Conference. He’s also used his experience from his years in Utah to help the Cavs grow. He brings a positive energy to the court, usually grinning from ear to ear and sending encouraging messages to his teammates when necessary.
He also takes responsibility for his play and acknowledges when he could have been better. He’s noted when he turned the ball over too many times, when he should have found teammates for open looks and passed the ball or defended a possession better. Mitchell has displayed a high level of accountability.
“He’s a very positive, upbeat person,” Bickerstaff said. “He’s a very grateful person. He understands the favor he’s been given, the blessings that he has, just as a human being.
“When you have someone who is willing to sacrifice of themselves, especially with the things he’s accomplished and achieved as an individual player, you’re willing to listen, then when you watch someone who’s willing to sacrifice and who is as selfless as he is and who just wants to be a part of it and a part of winning and ingratiate himself in the group, who always has a positive message, it’s hard to ignore. He’s got, at a young age, a ton of experience. … And it’s in a way that it never feels like it’s a beatdown or an attack. Everybody understands that he’s just trying to help. It makes it easier, but that’s based on the relationships and the type of person that he is beforehand.”
(Photo of the Knicks’ Julius Randle and Donovan Mitchell: Dennis Schneidler / USA Today)
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