The Cleveland Cavaliers didn’t have much trouble with the Miami Heat on Sunday, beating them 121-100 in their first game of the NBA playoffs.
Donovan Mitchell was a major part of the team’s victory, even though he was having some troubles, especially from the three-point line.
Following the game, Darius Garland talked to Cleveland.com about Mitchell and how he is always leading the team, even if he isn’t shooting as well as he’d like.
“That’s Don. I mean, that’s Spida Mitchell, what everybody calls him. We need him to be aggressive, regardless. It doesn’t matter if any shot is falling. He’s the head of the snake, and we go as he goes. So whenever he’s aggressive, everybody else feels aggressive,” Garland answered when asked what he thought of Mitchell’s three-point struggle and aggressiveness to the basket against the Heat. “So, yeah, it doesn’t matter if shots are falling for Don or not, we just need him in attack mode regardless.”
Mitchell posted 30 points, five rebounds, four assists, and four steals during the game.
He shot 11-of-19 from the field but just 2-of-9 from the three-point line.
Mitchell has been a calm but aggressive leader all season long, and his team has gladly fallen in line behind him.
There was a time when some people thought that Garland would be the team’s biggest player and definitive leader.
He is surely second-in-command now, but he is okay with that and embraces the leadership style of Mitchell.
Even when his three-point shot wasn’t falling, Mitchell set the tempo and attitude for his team and helped them score a big Game 1 win.
They want to make quick work of the Heat so they can plan the next round, and that will require Mitchell to keep shooting, even when he struggles, and also guide his team with authority.
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