With The Cleveland Cavaliers making arguably the most significant trade of the recent offseason in acquiring super-star guard Donovan Mitchell from the Utah Jazz the Cavs are now releasing that they have gotten much more than just a scorer from Utah, as they also got a great leader and team player. Mitchell has scored 100 points in his first three games as a Cleveland Cavalier, breaking Austin Carr’s record of 90 points in his first three games as a Cavalier.
With all-star point guard Darius Garland going down with an eye injury in the first game of this new season Mitchell has put the Cavaliers on his back to fight off this storm early in the season. In the latest Cavalier overtime win over the Washington Wizards, Donovan Mitchell was awarded the team’s Junkyard Dog award. An Honor the team hands out at the end of every game the team wins to the players who played the best defensively or offensively.
Mitchell seems happy in The Land
When Donovan came for his post-game interview wearing the giant C on a chain around his neck his smile could not be contained as he talked about the award and the game. “It meant a lot,” Mitchell said of earning the chain. “The guys in the locker room, when I saw RoLo get it last time, I was like, ‘Oh, this is pretty dope.’ For me, just to feel a part of the group. They’ve accepted me since Day 1. Just to go out there and continuously just find my way, whether it’s offensively, defensively. Then to get this, ‘It’s awesome.’” reported by The Athletic.com. You can see Donovan Mitchell’s interview via the NBA’s official Twitter accounts as linked here.
After the trade, many NBA insiders feared that The Cavaliers lacked on the defensive end as Mitchell had a dark cloud following him around in the media saying he does not play defense. Well, The Cavaliers are surely playing defense, and the player leading that defensive energy is Donovan Mitchell. In the absence of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell has stepped up to lead this young Cavaliers team to wins and a solid 2-1 start to the young Season.
How is Garland?
With Darius Garlands’ return to the court still under wraps, Donovan Mitchell and the rest of the Cleveland Cavaliers will have to hold out a little bit longer without their other leader and starting point guard. We all wish Garland a speedy recovery so we can see what this team can really do when fully healthy.
