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Cavs playoffs: Donovan Mitchell's health, Evan Mobley's approach top list of keys | Ulrich
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- Cavs playoffs: Donovan Mitchell's health, Evan Mobley's approach top list of keys | Ulrich
INDEPENDENCE — There are many keys to the Cavaliers fulfilling their potential as an Eastern Conference power by making a deep playoff run, but two centered on guard Donovan Mitchell and forward Evan Mobley top the list.
The floor for the top-seeded Cavs should be a strong showing in the Eastern Conference Finals, likely against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics . The ceiling is obviously the second title in Cleveland 's franchise history.
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Legitimately contending would be a stretch and a championship impossible unless Mitchell's body holds up and Mobley transfers his impressive 2024-25 offensive development to the playoffs .
Game 1 of the Cavs' first-round series is set for 7 p.m. Sunday at Rocket Arena against the East's No. 8 seed, which will be awarded to the winner of Friday night's NBA Play-In Tournament showdown between the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks .
Donovan Mitchell is still expected to be ready for Game 1 of Cavs playoffs as he practices without restrictions
Mitchell "was full go" in Thursday's practice with "no restrictions," Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said during media availability at Cleveland Clinic Courts.
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Mitchell suffered a sprained left ankle April 6 against the Sacramento Kings and proceeded to sit out the final four regular-season games.
Atkinson revealed this past weekend he expected Mitchell to fully participate in practice during the buildup to the playoffs, and the expectation has been met thus far.
"For Donovan and really for our whole team, that was the most important thing getting ready for these playoffs is go into it healthy," Atkinson said. "... I feel really relieved."
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) reacts after a play against the Sacramento Kings on April 6, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Although this qualifies as positive news for the Cavs, they're not out of the woods yet.
They need Mitchell's ankle to continue to respond well to ramping up and to the intensity of playoff competition. They need their leading scorer, who's averaging 24 points, and All-Star starter to be explosive and completely capable of relentlessly attacking. They also need him to compete with intensity on the defensive end of the floor.
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Mitchell's health is a huge priority. It's why the Cavs wisely shut him down for the remainder of the regular season after the ankle injury occurred.
The Cavs had reduced Mitchell's minutes throughout the regular season in an attempt to ensure he's healthier for the playoffs this time around. He averaged 31.4 minutes in 2024-25 compared with 35.3 in 2023-24 and 35.8 in 2022-23, his first season with the Cavs after a trade with the Utah Jazz .
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) throws a t-shirt to a fan during a break in a game against the Indiana Pacers on April 13, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Cavs learned a hard lesson last year. A left knee bone bruise hindered Mitchell throughout the second half of the 2023-24 season. A strained calf on the same leg forced him to miss the final two games of the playoffs while the Cavs were eliminated 4-1 by the Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
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Last offseason, the Cavs fired coach J.B. Bickerstaff and replaced him with Atkinson. Since the beginning of his tenure, Atkinson has stressed it's his responsibility to manage playing time with the health of players, specifically come playoff time, at the forefront of his thinking
Mitchell's sprained ankle on April 6 threatened to sabotage an organizational strategy devised by sports scientists and executed by Atkinson.
The Cavs appear to have averted disaster, yet Mitchell's health will be worth monitoring throughout the playoffs because it'll be paramount to Cleveland's success.
Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley 's challenge is applying his improvement as an offensive player to the 2025 NBA playoffs
After Mobley entered the NBA as the third overall draft pick by the Cavs in 2021, he immediately established himself as an elite defender. On the other hand, his evolution as an offensive player took more time, and a jump this season resulted in the first All-Star selection of his career.
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The Cavs need Mobley to transfer his offensive growth from the regular season to the playoffs. It's understandable why he defers at times to Mitchell and All-Star point guard Darius Garland on the offensive end of the floor because they're incredibly talented scorers and more established in the league at this stage of their careers. Mobley is only 23 years old. Mitchell is 28 and Garland 25.
Regardless, Mobley must resist falling into the trap of what Atkinson describes as "a neutral approach." The Cavs need him to be consistently aggressive. It pertains to his mentality toward scoring, ballhandling, playmaking and rebounding. Atkinson declared Mobley "should be a better rebounder" than he has been so far.
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (4) shoots over Chicago Bulls forward Zach Collins (12) on April 8, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio.
The message from a coach who routinely pushes the right buttons has been received.
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"A lot is on how I produce and my attitude towards the game — try to be locked in as possible every single game and go as far as we can," Mobley said.
Mobley is averaging 18.5 points after averaging 15.7 last season. His average field goals made and attempted have increased from 6.4 and 11 last season to 7.1 and 12.8. His 3-pointers made and attempted have risen from 0.4 and 1.2 to 1.2 and 3.2. With the higher volume, he's still shooting 55.7% from the field (37% on 3s) this season compared with 58% (37.3% on 3s) last season.
Cavs column: Donovan Mitchell's sacrifice is paying off for the Cleveland Cavaliers
Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley dribbles past Spurs guard Devin Vassell in the first half, April 4, 2025, in San Antonio.
It's time for Mobley to silence his critics who have dismissed his progress as merely a regular-season trend. His 33 points in Game 5 of Round 2 against the Celtics last year shows the playoff stage isn't too massive or the postseason style too rugged for him to shine. Still, Kristaps Porziņģis didn't play during Mobley's Game 5 outburst, and the Celtics big man has been a significant matchup problem for Mobley, so there is much left to prove.
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"He ended the last playoffs on a high note, just figuring out himself, figuring out how to dominate games," Cavs center Jarrett Allen said of Mobley. "And every single game this year, there's been carryover from the last just to improve as a player, and I truly believe it's going to happen in the playoffs as well."
For some, seeing is believing.
If Mitchell's ankle were to cooperate and Mobley were to deliver the offensive consistency his team seeks in the playoffs, the Cavs' path toward extending a run into June would become substantially more visible.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavs' Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley top keys to Cavaliers playoffs
