{"id":327269,"date":"2025-12-05T15:33:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T15:33:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/327269\/"},"modified":"2025-12-05T15:33:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T15:33:08","slug":"cavs-donovan-mitchell-is-great-but-dont-ask-him-to-always-be-superman-terry-pluto","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/327269\/","title":{"rendered":"Cavs\u2019 Donovan Mitchell is great, but don\u2019t ask him to always be \u2018Superman\u2019 \u2014 Terry Pluto"},"content":{"rendered":"

CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 I believe Kenny Atkinson knows that even Superman needs an occasional break. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had about two games where he\u2019s not been Superman,\u201d said the Cavs coach. \u201cWe need him to be Superman every night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Atkinson was talking about his All-Star guard, Donovan Mitchell. <\/p>\n

Superman?<\/p>\n

Mitchell has put on his cape and soared nearly every game this season, averaging a career-high 30.7 points. The nine-year veteran is shooting a career-best .506 from the field, and a second-best .382 from 3-point range.<\/p>\n

Atkinson mentioned Superman after the Cavs\u2019 122-110 loss <\/a>to Portland. That was Wednesday night, and it was their fourth loss in five games.<\/p>\n

It isn\u2019t just Atkinson putting pressure on Mitchell. The Cavs guard does that himself. He takes leadership seriously. He deeply cares about the team.<\/p>\n

BETTING: The over\/under<\/a> for Friday\u2019s Cavs versus Spurs matchup is set at 238.5 points on Caesars<\/a>. Our comprehensive Caesars Sportsbook review<\/a> shows you how to sign up and use their site.<\/p>\n

He knows with all the injuries and different lineups (12 in 23 games), it\u2019s been hard for the Cavs to sustain any flow. The continuity they had a year ago is gone. <\/p>\n

The temptation for a coach is to lean heavily on his star. And a classy star such as Mitchell wants to show he can guide the team through the stormy basketball seas.<\/p>\n

But the truth is Mitchell is not Superman, nor should he be expected to fill that role. <\/p>\n

He is playing 34.3 minutes per game, the second most of his career. It\u2019s not just the number of minutes, but the effort required by Mitchell to deal with the double-teams and other physical defenses he\u2019s facing. <\/p>\n

If he continues at this pace, he will be exhausted by the playoffs. The Cavs need him healthy for the postseason. <\/p>\n

Atkinson and the Cavs have to be aware of this. Now, they need to do something about it.<\/p>\n

\"ClevelandCavs Coach Kenny Atkinson appreciates Donovan Mitchell’s commitment to the team and winning.John Kuntz, cleveland.comInjuries, but something else …<\/p>\n

Guess what teams lead the NBA in 3-point shot attempts<\/a> per game?<\/p>\n

Since you\u2019re reading a story about the Cavs, Cleveland is indeed the answer.<\/p>\n

Guess where the Cavs rank in 3-point shooting?<\/p>\n

Out of 30 NBA teams, the Cavs are number \u2026 22. <\/p>\n

First in attempts, 22nd in making them. <\/p>\n

You don\u2019t need to be a math major or a basketball coach to know this is a problem. <\/p>\n

A huge problem. <\/p>\n

\"ClevelandDonovan Mitchell is carrying a heavy load this season.Joshua Gunter, cleveland.comSome basic math<\/p>\n

A year ago, the Cavs ranked second in 3-point percentage, so it made sense for them to be No. 4 in 3-pointers attempted per game.<\/p>\n

But this season, they are taking three more of those 3-point shots per game \u2013 and missing far more than a year ago.<\/p>\n

There are too many times when the Cavs are ignoring open driving lanes and settling for 3-point shots. Doesn\u2019t it drive you crazy when a Cavs player is within a few feet of the hoop \u2013 and fires a pass to an open teammate in the corner for a 3-point shot \u2026 which often bangs off the rim. <\/p>\n

I know, analytics insists, \u201cThree points are better than two.\u201d They want high-volume 3-point shooting. <\/p>\n

But my basic Benedictine math counters with, \u201cTwo points are better than none.\u201d <\/p>\n

This is not about going back to an era when teams were afraid to take 3-point shots. But now, they seem fearful of shooting from 2-point range within 5 feet of the basket.<\/p>\n

FYI: Denver leads the NBA in scoring at 125 points per game, and the Nuggets are only 23rd in 3-point shots attempted. <\/p>\n

A different year<\/p>\n

This 13-10 Cavs team is not the same as the 64-18 model of a year ago. <\/p>\n

They need to adapt to Darius Garland not being close to his All-Star point guard form of a year ago. He had major toe surgery. Never a strong defender, he is especially vulnerable in that area now. He simply isn\u2019t as quick due to the toe injury.<\/p>\n

Garland has played eight games, shooting exactly 34% from the field on 3-point shots. He is having problems driving past defenders to the rim. Some of this will improve with time, but it\u2019s an issue now.<\/p>\n

Jarrett Allen played all 82 games in 2024-25. He\u2019s been out for eight so far, and it probably will be more because of a broken finger. That hurts the team defense. Sam Merrill has been in and out of the lineup with a hand injury.<\/p>\n

On and on it goes. <\/p>\n

The Cavs are becoming overly dependent on Mitchell. They are throwing him the ball \u2026 and watching him try to create a shot. The offense stops.<\/p>\n

Atkinson stresses ball movement and player movement. It\u2019s what made the Cavs so dynamic on offense a year ago, when they led the NBA in scoring.<\/p>\n

The coach is integrating young players such as Nae\u2019Quan Tomlin, Tyrese Proctor, Jaylon Tyson and Craig Porter Jr. into key roles. It\u2019s a challenge for the coaching staff \u2013 and yes, for Mitchell.<\/p>\n

The Cavs are 13-10. It\u2019s been rocky, but the ship is not even close to sinking. But Atkinson and the players need to make some mid-course adjustments. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 I believe Kenny Atkinson knows that even Superman needs an occasional break. \u201cWe\u2019ve had about…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":327270,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[434],"tags":[49,48,37351,459,144560,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-327269","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-cleveland-cavaliers-2024-2025","11":"tag-nba","12":"tag-phoenix-suns-2024-2025","13":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=327269"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/327269\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/327270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=327269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=327269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=327269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}