After the Cleveland Cavs’ second-round playoff exit against the Indiana Pacers, All-Star Donovan Mitchell was so devastated over the loss that he didn’t leave the city. Mitchell remains invested in the Cavs’ success. Despite losing the Eastern Conference semifinals to the Pacers 4-1, Cleveland had a thrilling regular-season run, which made accepting elimination that much harder for Donovan.
In a regular season where the Cavs started off 15-0 before a franchise-record 16-game win streak from February to March, Mitchell had the highest hopes for the Cavs’ playoff run, culminating in an opportunity to compete for an NBA championship. Cleveland won 64 games, sitting atop the Eastern Conference throughout the regular season. Mitchell admitted he had a hard time accepting his team’s fate, per Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks X.
In my mind, it was like this is supposed to [happen]. Everybody says, like you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans, and that was my plan,” Mitchell said. “Like, alright, cool, 60 games, we’re on these win streaks, alright, cool. I’m not saying we took anything for granted at all by any means, but this felt like this was that time. I think everybody can agree with that.”
But with key Cavs players missing games against the Pacers, including Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and DeAndre Hunter, Cleveland lost its second-round series in five games.
“I think that’s why when it ended so abruptly, like even in the summer I didn’t have any plans, I didn’t know what to do,” Mitchell added. “That’s why I think I found myself, even though I was moving around and different things, I found myself just sitting there, just trying to process that we don’t play tomorrow. I was in Cleveland for about a week after. Usually, after the season, I fly out to go back home. I just couldn’t leave because it was just like there’s no way.”
