Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson mentioned pregame that he was anxious to see how his team responded to adversity for the first time this season ahead of their matchup with the Boston Celtics. He has to be pleased with the results after it seemed like the Celtics delivered a knockout punch three or four times, but the Cavs kept fighting back to pull out an improbable 115-111 victory.
The Cavs had a strong first two quarters, but once again let go of the rope in the third quarter. Seventeen third-quarter points from Jayson Tatum created a 14-point advantage for Boston. But the Cavs kept fighting led by Donovan Mitchell.
Mitchell didn’t have it going for three quarters as he was shooting just 6-15 from the field heading into the final frame. He completely took over from there as he buried three-straight triples from the three-minute mark to 1:40 to turn a five-point deficit into a tie. He gave the Cavs their first lead of the fourth on the next possession with a floater in the lane. Mitchell then put the game away by reading the double, finding Isaac Okoro, who then dished it to a cutting Evan Mobley for the game-sealing dunk.
This is the type of performance you envision when you trade for Mitchell. He brought the Cavs back when they seemed dead in the water. This is what you want your superstar guard to do against the best team in the league. He finished with 35 points on 12-21 shooting with 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
This wasn’t a perfect game. The perimeter defense that was a problem recently against the Atlanta Hawks still wasn’t perfect. Kristaps Porzingis torched the Cavs from deep as he provided 21 points on 3-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Tatum also devoured the mismatches as he put up 33 points.
The Cavaliers did just enough on offense to outscore the shorthanded Celtics. Mobley, who has feasted against the switch-heavy defense in the past, struggled to convert those looks on Sunday. This was on top of another no-show from Jarrett Allen in this matchup.
Darius Garland had a strong bounce-back performance after a poor showing against the Celtics in Boston. He provided 22 points on 5-12 shooting with multiple clutch free throws to ice the game away.
The Cavaliers are a work in progress. The defense needs to be cleaned up and the offensive execution wasn’t perfect. But, pulling out a win against the defending champions while being a work and progress is impressive. This was a statement win for a team that desperately needed some positive momentum after their first losing streak of the year.
