Evan Mobley

Central Notes: Mobley, Garland, Pacers, Giannis, Lillard

May 1st, 2024 at 6:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jarrett Allen‘s rib injury meant the Cavaliers needed a huge performance from Evan Mobley in Game 5, and he responded with 14 points, 13 rebounds and a game-saving block in the final seconds, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Mobley switched onto Orlando’s Franz Wagner on a drive to the basket and tipped away a shot that would have tied the game.

“It was a big play,” Mobley said. “The game was on the line. I just went for it. I knew he was going to go for the layup. So, went for it, got a clean block and we got the rebound. So, got us to win. I’m just trying to make game-winning plays and winning plays as much as possible, especially on the stretch. And I feel like I did a good job this game.”

The win was vital for a Cavs team that had just come off two lopsided losses to the Magic and was hoping to avoid going to back to Orlando with a 3-2 deficit. Allen is considered day to day, and there’s no indication yet of whether he’ll be ready when the series resumes Friday night. Coach J.B. Bickerstaff said the team will continue to use a “committee” approach if his starting center isn’t available.

There’s more from the Central Division:

After struggling to score for most of the series, Darius Garland provided an early spark for the Cavaliers in Game 5, Andrews adds. Garland, who had plus-minus ratings of minus-22 and minus-27 in the two losses at Orlando, poured in 17 points in the first quarter Tuesday. “Shoot. Shoot. Shoot,” Donovan Mitchell responded when asked about his advice for Garland. “I don’t give a damn. Shoot the ball. At the end of the day, go out swinging — and there’s a different spark we get when he’s like that. You see it. I’ve set the tones in Games 1 and 2, but there’s a different spark too when he’s also continuing to go. He’s a guy that’s [an] All-Star-level player, caliber player, and he’s just — shoot the ball, be you, be aggressive. And that’s what you see tonight.”
The Pacers feel like they squandered a golden opportunity to close out their series, losing by 23 points Tuesday to a Bucks team playing without Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic. Indiana players realize that they’ll have to match Milwaukee’s intensity in Game 6. “We gotta understand they’re a team on the brink of their season being done,” Tyrese Haliburton said. “They’re playing desperate, they’re playing hard as they should be. They out-competed us tonight. Dominated us in every facet of the game.”
The Bucks may continue to be short-handed as Antetokounmpo (left soleus strain) and Lillard (right Achilles tendinitis) are both listed as doubtful for Thursday’s contest, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Patrick Beverley (right oblique muscle strain) and Khris Middleton (right ankle sprain) are considered probable.

Cavaliers Notes: Mitchell, Bickerstaff, Mobley, Garland

April 27th, 2024 at 9:52pm CST by Arthur Hill

Donovan Mitchell accepted responsibility for the Cavaliers‘ woeful offense in Saturday’s loss at Orlando, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Mitchell was held scoreless in the second half — and Cleveland only managed 29 points after intermission — in a lopsided loss that evened the series at 2-2.

“You can’t have a drought like that,” he said. “It starts with me. I didn’t score in the second half. I’ve been starting second halves like that all series. Ten points (for Cleveland in the third quarter) is outrageous. We have to be better. I have to be better. I’m disappointed in myself and I’ll be better.”

Mitchell has been much better in the first half than the second throughout the series, and the Magic were able to completely shut him down today, mostly through the work of Jalen Suggs, who limited Mitchell to 1-of-6 shooting with three turnovers as his primary defender. The Cavs will have to find a way to unleash Mitchell when the series resumes Tuesday to avoid a second straight first-round exit.

“It’s 2-2. You give credit where credit is due. They handled their business at home. That’s it,” Mitchell said. “It’s upsetting we didn’t respond, but we’ll find a way to do it at the crib like we did the first two games. Or else we will be home early. But they did for two games. We did it for two games. It’s best of three now.”

There’s more on the Cavaliers:

For all the speculation about Mitchell’s extension, Cleveland may have to trade him this summer because he’s a bad fit with the rest of the team, contends Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Vardon notes that Mitchell has only produced two good playoff games since the Cavs traded for him last year, and the team is just 3-6 in the postseason with Mitchell. He has 15 turnovers and seven made threes in the current series while shooting just 25% from beyond the arc.
J.B. Bickerstaff is being out-coached in a series where his job is probably on the line, Vardon states in the same story. Vardon believes Orlando’s Jamahl Mosley is making better adjustments to the extent that Cavs center Jarrett Allen seemed to question Bickerstaff’s defensive approach after the loss in Game 3.
The long-term value of Evan Mobley and Darius Garland may also be reexamined if the Cavaliers can’t win the series, Vardon adds. Although Mobley has been a difference maker on defense since he entered the league, his offensive game hasn’t developed and the Magic are dominating him physically in the playoffs, just as New York did last year. Mobley will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer. Garland is in the first season of a five-year extension worth nearly $200MM, and Vardon wonders if the Cavs will be eager to keep both guards if they’re able to reach an extension with Mitchell.

Central Notes: Cavaliers, McDermott, Sasser, Bitim

March 25th, 2024 at 9:20am CST by Arthur Hill

The rigors of a long season and the toll of injuries caught up with the Cavaliers Sunday night in Miami, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavs looked “disinterested, distracted and exhausted,” according to Fedor, as they trailed by 21 points at halftime and fell behind by as many as 45 in the second half.

“We’ve asked these guys to do so much,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “We have asked them to carry a burden of everybody having to do more because of all the injuries and the things we are going through. I think it just showed tonight. It caught up with us. I think mentally and physically, we are worn. It’s on us all to figure it out. No excuses. It doesn’t get any easier. I think tonight was one of those nights where collectively it just set in on us. It was uncharacteristic of this group. I think we had one of those nights.”

Cleveland welcomed back Evan Mobley, who played 21 minutes in his return from a left ankle sprain that had sidelined him since March 5. However, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus and Dean Wade all remain sidelined, and Bickerstaff pulled his starters early in the third quarter to save them for tonight’s second game of a back-to-back.

“These games happen in the NBA where you just get knocked out in the first half and you can never really get back up and start swinging,” Georges Niang said. “Nobody is going to feel bad for us because everybody has had to go through the same thing this year. You just have to have amnesia and flush this one. There is nothing that we can gain from this. Nobody likes getting beat like we just got beat. I think we will remember the feeling of what it felt like to get whooped and fight to never have that feeling again.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

Doug McDermott has become a dangerous weapon for the Pacers since returning from a strained right calf that kept him out of action for nearly a month, observes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. Over his last three games, McDermott is 9-of-15 from the floor and 5-of-11 from three-point range. “With shooting, there’s going to be some weird pockets every once in a while,” McDermott said. “I wasn’t shooting it great. I knew every time I shoot the ball it has a chance of going in. I just gotta have that belief and just keep firing away. These guys are so unselfish. They kept finding me. It will fall.”
Pistons rookie Marcus Sasser is a natural scorer who’s learning to play point guard in the NBA, per James L. Edwards of The Athletic. Sasser is shooting 44.1% from the field and 39.3% from three-point range, but at 6’1″ he needs to develop his play-making skills to fully unlock his game. “There’s a difference learning when to score, when to pass,” he said. “The main thing, right now, I’m just trying to get better in pick-and-rolls, to make the right reads. I feel like the scoring and stuff will come. It’s a learning experience for me.”
Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times examines whether Onuralp Bitim can develop into a Max Strus-type player for the Bulls.

Central Notes: Wade, Cavs, Thompson, McDermott, Stewart

March 16th, 2024 at 3:24pm CST by Luke Adams

After missing the Cavaliers‘ past three games for personal reasons, forward Dean Wade rejoined the club and participated in Friday’s practice, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required).

With forward Evan Mobley unavailable due to a left ankle sprain, Wade had been inserted into the starting lineup prior to his stint away from the team. Georges Niang was elevated to the starting five during Wade’s absence, and it’s unclear whether Wade will reclaim that spot once he’s ready to return, Fedor writes. The Cavaliers can put off that decision for at least one more game, since Wade will be out on Saturday in Houston due to knee soreness (Twitter link via Fedor).

As for Mobley, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said the big man is doing some “light work” and making progress in his recovery. A source tells Fedor that Mobley did some shooting work on Friday, but didn’t participate in practice and is unlikely to play on the Cavaliers’ current road trip, which runs through Monday.

There’s also still no specific timeline for the return of Max Strus from a left knee strain, Fedor adds. The Cavs’ starting small forward will miss his seventh straight game on Saturday.

Here’s more from around the Central:

In a separate subscriber-only story for Cleveland.com, Fedor notes that Tristan Thompson‘s 25-game suspension has come to an end, meaning he can once again be active for the Cavaliers as of Saturday. Thompson, who expressed excitement about returning, joked that he was so anxious to play that he “thought about sneaking into the arena a couple times” during his suspension. Bickerstaff, meanwhile, lauded Thompson’s impact in the locker room and referred to the veteran center as “this group’s big brother.”
Pacers forward Doug McDermott is “getting close” from returning from the right calf strain that has kept him on the shelf for the past eight games, head coach Rick Carlisle said on Friday, per Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. McDermott has been ruled out for Saturday’s contest against Brooklyn, but practiced on Friday. Indiana should benefit from re-adding him to a second unit that recently lost Bennedict Mathurin for the season.
In an interesting conversation with James L. Edwards III of The Athletic, Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart discussed what it was like coming to terms with the knowledge that he won’t become a superstar at the NBA level after starring at every level prior to being drafted. “You definitely have to swallow some ego,” Stewart said. “… Once you get to a certain point … I guess, you see it for what it is. I’m just shooting you straight — there aren’t often plays called for me. For me, it’s, ‘How can I still impact the game?’ To me, I’d rather have the impact that I have, on defense. I feel like I can control the game that way.”

Extended Absence Anticipated For Cavs’ Evan Mobley

March 6th, 2024 at 6:30pm CST by Luke Adams

6:30pm: The Cavaliers announced (via Twitter) that Mobley will be reevaluated in approximately one week.

3:19pm: Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley is expected to be sidelined for an extended period after spraining his left ankle on Tuesday against the Celtics, league sources tell Shams Charania, Joe Vardon, and Jason Lloyd of The Athletic.

As The Athletic’s reporters note, the Cavs haven’t issued a formal update on Mobley’s status beyond ruling him out for Wednesday’s contest in Atlanta. An official timeline likely won’t be determined until the “significant” swelling of his ankle has subsided, per Charania, Vardon, and Lloyd.

However, one source tells The Athletic that “it will be some time” before Mobley is able to return, while another said he’ll be “out a while.”

Mobley suffered the injury in the third quarter on Tuesday when he landed awkwardly following a made dunk (video link via NBA.com). He reportedly left the arena on crutches after the Cavaliers erased a 22-point deficit and completed a dramatic comeback win over the NBA’s top team.

It’s discouraging news for a third-year big man who already missed a month-and-a-half earlier this season due to a separate injury. Mobley underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and was unavailable for 22 consecutive games in December and January.

In the 38 games he has been played, Mobley has been a key part of Cleveland’s starting lineup, averaging 15.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 31.1 minutes per night.

With Mobley on the shelf, Jarrett Allen will once again take on more responsibilities in the Cavs’ frontcourt, as he did earlier in the year. Dean Wade, who was a major factor in Tuesday’s comeback with 20 points in the fourth quarter, is another candidate for an increased role.

Cavs Notes: Mitchell, Wade, Mobley, 15th Man

March 6th, 2024 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

When they announced on Monday that Donovan Mitchell had received a platelet-rich plasma injection to treat his left knee injury, the Cavaliers ruled him out for their next three games. However, there’s no guarantee that Mitchell will be ready to return following those three games, as head coach J.B. Bickerstaff told reporters on Tuesday before his team faced the Celtics.

“I expect him to be back before a month,” Bickerstaff said, per Tom Withers of The Associated Press. “I don’t like to overstep my bounds, but at the end of the three games, they’ll reevaluate and then we’ll make a decision from there. I’m hopeful and do not expect this to be a long break, but we will always do what’s best by our guys to make sure they’re healthy.”

The Cavaliers have referred to Mitchell’s injury as a bone bruise, but Bickerstaff suggested that it’s an issue that has developed over time and got to the point where it didn’t make sense for the star guard to play through it.

“It’s more of a wear and tear thing,” the Cavs’ coach said. “It was like a tendinitis-type thing that kind of just flared up. So it’s not something that just happened, but something that just built over time.

“… He couldn’t move going certain directions because of the pain and how it was limited. I’m not a doctor, but from everything that I’m hearing, the time, the rest and the process should get him back to full strength.”

As we noted on Monday, while Mitchell has put up All-NBA numbers in Cleveland this season, leading the team with 28.0 points and a career-best 6.2 assists per game, he’s in danger of falling short of the 65-game minimum required to qualify for end-of-season awards. After Friday, he’ll have missed 16 games this season — he can’t miss more than 17 if he hopes to be eligible for All-NBA consideration, but getting him healthy for a playoff run figures to be the priority.

Here’s more on the Cavs:

An unlikely hero led the Cavaliers past Boston in a stunning comeback win on Tuesday, as Withers writes in a separate Associated Press story. Forward Dean Wade, who has been coming off the bench since January 26 after starting earlier in the season, made five three-pointers and scored 20 points in the fourth quarter as Cleveland erased a 22-point deficit and pulled out a one-point upset victory. “The rim looked like a swimming pool,” Wade told reporters after the game.
The good vibes in the locker room after Tuesday’s win were diminished somewhat by the fact that Evan Mobley exited the game in the third quarter due to a left ankle sprain, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. According to Fedor, Mobley was seen leaving the arena on crutches and likely won’t be available on Wednesday vs. Atlanta. It’s unclear how much more time the big man might miss beyond that.
The Cavaliers will open up a roster spot after Wednesday’s contest when Sharife Cooper‘s 10-day contract expires. It’s unclear if the Cavs intend to sign Cooper to a second 10-day deal — he has yet to appear in an NBA game through his first nine days under contract. The club wouldn’t necessarily have to fill that open 15-man roster spot immediately.

Central Notes: Duren, Pistons, Haliburton, Mitchell, Mobley

January 29th, 2024 at 12:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jalen Duren had 22 points and 21 rebounds as the Pistons surprised Oklahoma City on Sunday, but he didn’t want anyone to think that’s all he did, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit News. “And six assists,” Duren pointed out as he spoke with reporters after the game. Cade Cunningham was a late scratch as he continues his recovery from a knee strain, so Detroit ran some of its offense through the second-year center.

“Honestly, we were able to get the win and that’s what I’m most happy about, it’s a big-time win,” Duren said. “Especially after yesterday. Just happy about that. 20 and 20 is 20 and 20, but for me I knew it was bound to happen at some time so I wasn’t really that worried about it.”

Duren has been one of the few bright spots for the Pistons, but Sankofa reports that the organization still believes it can salvage something from this season despite a 6-40 record and a historic losing streak. Duren has become much more polished that he was as a rookie, Sankofa adds, displaying better touch and footwork around the basket while being given more leeway to handle the ball and create plays under new coach Monty Williams.

“I just think he’s putting the work in,” Williams said. “I’ve told him if he’s gonna be the guy that we feel like he can be, he’s gotta own that position. Earlier, I thought that he was renting it because he would show flashes of it and then you wouldn’t see it. We just talk about the work that goes into being a solid player, then a good player, then a really good player and then a great player, on and on and on, you have to put in tons of work and just repeat those moves.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

With the trade deadline nearing, James L. Edwards of The Athletic talks with other Athletic writes about potential Pistons deals involving Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks. They review proposed trades with the Lakers, Knicks and Thunder.
The Pacers are optimistic that Tyrese Haliburton will be available Tuesday night against Boston after missing 10 of the last 11 games with a left hamstring injury, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell participated in today’s shootaround and is listed as probable to play tonight after undergoing a scare involving a groin injury late in the Milwaukee game, tweets Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Evan Mobley also took part in the shootaround amid reports that he’ll be able to return soon following left knee surgery (Twitter link).

Cavaliers Notes: Mobley, Garland, Allen, Thompson, Porter

January 25th, 2024 at 4:34pm CST by Rory Maher

Injured Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley is making steady progress in his return from left knee surgery and participated in a contact practice on Thursday, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who says Mobley could return as soon as next week after being sidelined since December 6.

“If everything continues to progress, it will be soon,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff told Fedor. “He’s progressed positively. It’s what you want to see. He hasn’t had any setbacks to slow his progression. He continues to ramp up in the right direction. It’s what we expected. He looks good. He continues to build. It remains a matter of how everything responds.”

However, even if Mobley does come back next week, he’ll be on a minutes restriction to start out, Fedor notes.

“It will probably be a low-20-minute-a-night workload to start with,” Bickerstaff said. “We’ve got to ramp him back up. When you go down with a knee injury, not a lot of conditioning that you can do and those types of things. You can’t simulate the NBA. We will work on that. We will let him get his conditioning back. The minutes will increase as that gets better.”

Mobley may be back soon, but point guard Darius Garland will likely be out a while longer, Fedor adds. Garland is working his way back into shape after sustaining a broken jaw on December 14 vs. Boston.

Here’s more on the Cavs:

Center Jarrett Allen set a team record with his 12th consecutive double-double in Monday’s win over Orlando, Fedor writes for Cleveland.com (subscription required). Allen later extended the streak to 13 games in Wednesday’s loss to Milwaukee. Allen has stepped up in a major way since Mobley and Garland went down with injuries, averaging 18.4 PPG, 14.1 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.1 SPG and 1.4 BPG while shooting 64.0% from the field and 83.9 from the line during the streak. “He’s a hell of a person,” star guard Donovan Mitchell said of Allen, a former All-Star. “To see the work that he puts in on a daily basis, it’s great to see those efforts starting to come to fruition. To be able to do it after losing someone who is an All-Defensive player like Ev, be able to hold the fort down, set that tone for us, it’s incredible. I’m happy for him. He acknowledged it but he’s not satisfied. The biggest thing was the win. These don’t mean anything if we lose. I think that’s one of the things that’s so special about him. He means everything to us. He is the catalyst.”
Backup center Tristan Thompson gave an emotional apology to his teammates before the news of his 25-game suspension was announced, Fedor adds in another subscriber-only story. A veteran leader with a prominent voice in the locker room, Thompson was suspended for violating the league’s anti-drug policy. Thompson’s teammates said they gained more respect for him for taking responsibility for his actions. “Tristan is huge for our team,” Max Strus said. “The things he does as leader off the court and what he does for us on the bench, the inspiration he gives us when he plays and how hard he plays, we’re going to miss that. We’re just gonna ask somebody else to step up. We have to band around our brother. We’re always going to be here for him.”
According to rookie guard Craig Porter, who is on a two-way deal with Cleveland, the only reason he’s in the NBA is because he was able to attend the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, he told Alex Kennedy on the Running Up The Score podcast (Twitter video link). That’s how he drew the attention of NBA scouts, with Porter saying he’d be playing overseas right now if he hadn’t had the opportunity. Porter has been viewed as a strong candidate to be promoted to a standard deal later in the season, as two-way players aren’t playoff-eligible.

Cavs Rumors: Mitchell, Rubio, Allen, Bickerstaff

December 20th, 2023 at 10:04am CST by Luke Adams

The injuries that will sideline Darius Garland and Evan Mobley well into the new year aren’t expected to significantly impact the Cavaliers‘ plans for this season, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, who says the franchise remains committed to its core of Garland, Mobley, Donovan Mitchell, and Jarrett Allen.

As Fischer writes, there has been “incessant chatter” among rival executives about the possibility of Mitchell leaving Cleveland in 2025, when he can opt out of his current contract, with speculation about his next destination focusing on the New York teams (the Knicks and Nets). However, those whispers haven’t affected the Cavaliers’ resolve to this point, Fischer explains.

In the event that the Cavs begin to struggle and slide down the standings without Garland and Mobley available, it’s possible the front office will have to reconsider its approach to the trade deadline. But Koby Altman and his group seem to have the “sturdy backing” of ownership, per Fischer, so the odds appear slim that a substantial change in direction will occur in the coming weeks.

Here’s more from Fischer on the Cavaliers:

One move Cleveland might make on or before the February 8 deadline would involve Ricky Rubio, according to Fischer, who suggests the team would like to turn Rubio’s salary slot into a player who could contribute this season. The veteran point guard announced in August that he’d be pausing his career to focus on his mental health, and there has been no indication that the “pause” will end anytime soon, so he’d be a buyout candidate if he’s traded to a new team, Fischer adds.
While the Cavs have no plans to trade him, Allen would receive “plenty” of interest from playoff contenders if he were ever made available. League sources tell Fischer that the Pelicans are one team that has long had its eye on Allen and would be interested if Cleveland is willing to listen to offers down the road.
There was some noise early in the season about whether J.B. Bickerstaff‘s hold on his head coaching job might be slipping, but Fischer hears from sources that the Cavs don’t seem to be in any rush to make a change on the sidelines. Injuries to Garland and Mobley may actually reduce the pressure on Bickerstaff, Fischer points out, since expectations for the club will be tempered without those two young stars in the lineup.

Cavs Notes: Injuries, New Lineup, Mitchell, Roster

December 17th, 2023 at 10:56am CST by Luke Adams

Less than an hour after it was reported on Friday that Darius Garland is expected to miss at least a month due to a fractured jaw, word broke that Evan Mobley would undergo knee surgery, which will sideline him for roughly six-to-eight weeks.

It was a crushing one-two blow for the Cavaliers, as Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required) writes. Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said that the team “felt like s–t,” while Dean Wade said it “sucks” to see two key starters go down with injuries. However, the club is determined to remain competitive without Garland and Mobley in its lineup.

“Injury is a part of the game. But you hate to see it. Hate to see with two guys who continuously put the work in to get better and those guys have been working their butts off,” Donovan Mitchell said. “On the flip side, and I think these two will feel the same way, no one’s going to care outside of this locker room. You know what I mean? If anything, teams are going to want to try to come at us even more. I think that’s what kind of brings us together. We have to go out there and hold it down for these two. They’re our rocks. They’re part of what we built.”

“I knew that our team could do it,” Jarrett Allen said of overcoming the two injuries. “We always rely on the next guy to be ready to come in and make an impact.”

The Cavaliers got off to a good start on Saturday in their first game without Garland and Mobley, defeating the Hawks by a score of 127-119.

“I think we just came together,” Wade said. “Everyone likes each other. When things like this happen, adversity comes and hits us, I think we get closer. We still got a lot of weapons, a lot of talent in this room. Even with those guys out, we can still get the job done. What D.G. and Evan bring to the floor, we just had to do a little extra.”

Here’s more out of Cleveland:

In deciding on a new lineup, the Cavaliers opted to slide Mitchell to point guard and Max Strus to shooting guard, with Isaac Okoro and Wade entering the starting five at small forward and power forward, respectively. As Fedor explains, undrafted rookie Craig Porter Jr. isn’t considered quite ready for a starting job and the Cavs seem committed to keeping Caris LeVert in a sixth man role.
When Joe Vardon of The Athletic tried to ask Mitchell on Saturday about his contract situation and his long-term future in Cleveland in light of the Garland and Mobley injuries (and the Cavs’ up-and-down play this season), the star guard cut him off. “My job is to focus on this,” Mitchell said. “We have two guys that are out, so I’m not answering anything. And no disrespect. I appreciate that you have to ask the question, but I’m not going there with any of those questions. My focus is on these guys being out, us trying to find a way to get wins.”
Mitchell thrived in his first game in place of Garland at point guard, handing out a career-high 13 assists. Mitchell also scored a career-high 71 points last season in a game Garland missed, but the former Jazz star said it’s “damn sure not easier” to play without his usual backcourt mate. “I have to pick up the slack that’s there,” Mitchell said. “When he’s not there, it’s my job to go out there and fill that void. He’s an All-Star guard. We came here and made this for us to be together. It’s definitely not an, ‘Oh, it’s me versus him.’ That’s my brother. That’s my dog. … The only way we make this push is as a group. I can’t do everything. It doesn’t happen with just one of us.”
Keith Smith of Spotrac takes a look at some options out there for the Cavaliers if the team decides it wants to add roster reinforcements via free agency or trade. As Smith notes, adding a free agent would push Cleveland’s team salary over the luxury tax line, but if that player receives a non-guaranteed contract and is waived on or before January 7, the club could sneak back out of the tax.

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