Over the course of the 2023-24 NBA regular season, there’s been a lot of speculation about Donovan Mitchell and his future with the Cleveland Cavaliers, with some believing he would like to be traded elsewhere this summer.
Obviously, having all that uncertainty and questions swirling around their best player is not ideal heading into the NBA playoffs, where they’ll have to face a motivated young team like the Orlando Magic.
At different times during this seven-game series against the Magic, the Cavaliers looked checked out and potentially ready to head into the NBA offseason, which would’ve been a terrible scenario considering the shaky status of Mitchell’s future.
However, in Game 7 on Sunday in Cleveland, Mitchell showed why the Cavaliers traded for him in the first place as he put on a show against the Magic, finishing with a game-high 39 points.
After the game, Mitchell wanted to focus on the upcoming second-round series with the Boston Celtics rather than the series they just won, according to Hayden Grove of Cleveland.com.
“They traded for me for more than just winning a first-round series,” Mitchell said.
Donovan Mitchell feels that this series should be celebrated for a couple hours tonight, but not much more:
“They traded for me for more than just winning a first round series.”#Cavs pic.twitter.com/QmAbLLGiJn
— Hayden Grove (@H_Grove) May 5, 2024
Mitchell seems to have the right mindset moving forward, as the Cavaliers will face an incredibly tough challenge to take down Jayson Tatum and the top-seeded Celtics in the second round, which will be no easy task.
As for Boston, the Celtics are coming off an impressive showing in the first round against the Miami Heat, where they beat Erik Spoelstra’s squad in five games and looked locked in and ready for a deep playoff run.
NEXT:
Fans React To Donovan Mitchell’s Game 7 Performance
