After establishing an incredible campaign, the Cleveland Cavaliers find themselves in unfamiliar territory now.
The Cleveland Cavaliers got in trouble as they marked a historic winning streak that cleared the top of the Eastern Conference.
They are currently enduring a four-game winning streak since red-hot to secure 16 consecutive victories.
The March 21 road matchup with the Phoenix Suns crashed even harder as Kevin Durant erupted with 42 points to beat 123-112.
The Cavs are unique, losing out due to extended stretches as they were on the league leaderboards all season, alongside the Oklahoma City Thunder and reigning champion Boston Celtics.
One important aspect of their ongoing downslide is Donovan Mitchell.
Cavs franchise star and uncontroversial No. 1, Mitchell has been in a recession since the start of a losing streak. In the last four games, he averaged 18.5 points and only 29.6% shooting (from 3 to 16.2%).
Against the Suns, he played his worst game as a Cavalier, dropping a seven-point output while still two-eighth from the field.
In the post-match press, Mitchell was dull in tackling his personal struggle that had a serious impact on the Cavs.
“It’s been something like this in the last four games and I’ve lost four consecutive things. I have to get better,” Mitchell said. “That’s easy.
“You can refer to all these different things like KD has 30. That’s on me. I have to be better for the group.
“I’ve been good with the group all year round, and this is with me.”
Mitchell was a major force in the Cavaliers’ emergence this season. He averaged 24.2 points on 45.1% shooting to go with 4.8 assists and 4.3 boards before the start of Cleveland’s horrifying outing.
The Cavaliers are under immeasurable pressure after all of their successes that enjoyed this regular season. How they end 2024-25 certainly wields Mitchell’s performance as the team’s lead man. One analyst named him the player under the most pressure towards the NBA playoffs.
Meanwhile, when Mitchell took responsibility, Kenny Atkinson insisted that the entire group must gather behind the franchise stars.
“He’s hitting .400. …You’re just going to have moments like this during the season,” said the Cavs mentor.
“We’re running them hard. It’s the third game in four nights and this is the reality of the NBA. Even the great stuff, I’ve seen it happen to KD, I’ve seen it happen to the books. It’s part of it.
“In these moments we feel like we have to lift him up, we need him to come and help, that’s what I love about the bench, and that’s why we went to it early.
“We can’t expect him to have a don every night, do you know? Do it. He’s 98% of the time and we take it.”
Mitchell and the Cavaliers will try to get themselves back on track on March 23 this year, facing the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City.