Donovan Mitchell Scores 50 Points and Cavs Still Lose

[GameChannel]

Trouble for Cleveland is what will do in their off season if Mitchell isn't willing to sign an extension
.
Part of me would love to see him traded to San Antonio, see how he could work with Wemby !

I don't want that chucker anywhere near my Spurs. He's a career loser and thinks he's a better player than he actually is.

[jbk1234]

Garland was awful down the stretch in this game. Turning the ball over, missing shots, falling asleep on defense, not getting the ball across halfcourt in time. It was one of the worst games I've ever seen him play.

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

[iLLmatic860]

Now obviously Spida is ballin but Why they hell did Cavs give up a superstar trade package when they clearly aren't ready just to be stuck in the middle? Normally you make that kind of trade when you already have that guy. Barely can get out 1st round

I still think they win this series but something about this team lacks toughness and does not feel like a legit contender even when everything is clicking?

What do they need to do?

Win game 7. Next...

Obviously

Unless if they have some surprise run and make the finals, I was moreso talking about in the offseason

Something just feels off about this team

[Rendei]

Garland was awful down the stretch in this game. Turning the ball over, missing shots, falling asleep on defense, not getting the ball across halfcourt in time. It was one of the worst games I've ever seen him play.

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

[iLLmatic860]

He scored 50 points. How can you guys fault him for that? He had the hot hand and he was very efficient.

Because this is a pattern from Mitchell. He's a great individual talent, but he never elevated a teams offense or makes people around him better. Pretty awful as a passer, defender, rebounder, and leader. I always feel guilty about the haul Cleveland gave us for him

A well off man’s version of Zach Lavine that has been backed by defensive ace big men his whole career, and that don’t cry for the ball most of his career (Rudy finally did). So he can get away with his style of play and win some. In worse situations, I’d guess he’s closer to getting the ‘loser’ label that’s applied to a guy like Lavine.

That's not even fair

has Spida ever even missed the playoffs?

Lavine is Beal tier

I would say Spida is atleast a much better leader than those two but I do agree about the Rudy thing, obviously with how great Minny is, it's clear why those Jazz teams were so great. I think Lavine is a loser but I don't feel that way about MItchell. I just don't think he's good enough to get you over the top but he'll def win you some games.

[cgf]

Now obviously Spida is ballin but Why they hell did Cavs give up a superstar trade package when they clearly aren't ready just to be stuck in the middle? Normally you make that kind of trade when you already have that guy. Barely can get out 1st round

I still think they win this series but something about this team lacks toughness and does not feel like a legit contender even when everything is clicking?

What do they need to do?

Win game 7. Next...

Obviously

Unless if they have some surprise run and make the finals, I was moreso talking about in the offseason

Something just feels off about this team

What's off is they've been stuck waiting to find out if Mitchell will extend or not. If they were certain Mitchell was there for half a decade, they could've used Garland to acquire a wing to better balance their lineup. Instead they've had to hold onto Garland as their insurance policy, which has been bad for his development & caused him to regress.

This summer should give them clarity about whether they can build around Mitchell or if they need to re-trade him before he can walk for nothing.

[DowJones]

Garland was awful down the stretch in this game. Turning the ball over, missing shots, falling asleep on defense, not getting the ball across halfcourt in time. It was one of the worst games I've ever seen him play.

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

[jbk1234]

Garland was awful down the stretch in this game. Turning the ball over, missing shots, falling asleep on defense, not getting the ball across halfcourt in time. It was one of the worst games I've ever seen him play.

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

The 8 second call was bad (even of they started that shot clock way earlier than they normally do off a missed free throw). But Garland wasn't awful, he was simply irrelevant on offense as were the rest of Mitchell's teammates. Okoro passed on an open look, but other than that, no one shrank from the moment, they just didn't get the opportunity. I only see two shots in the play-by-play by Mitchell's teammates before the 8 second mark.

We entered the 4th quarter up by 5. We didn't need Kobe. We didn't need Mitchell scoing 18 if it meant his teammates would score zero. If Garland is just going to be a decoy, then why even have him out there?

We needed 5 guys rebounding with Allen and Wade out. We needed to not give up so many second chance points. This is the second playoff game where Mitchell has taken more than 35 shots, the Cavs lost them both, and in both cases, we struggled to end the other team's possessions.

[jbk1234]

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Please cite by minute and second mark in the 4th quarter the plays where Garland shied away from taking a shot. Seriously, I'll wait because you and I saw something very different.

Also, at no point on his entire career was Teague anywhere as good as Garland.

[DowJones]

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Please cite by minute and second mark in the 4th quarter the plays where Garland shied away from taking a shot. Seriously, I'll wait because you and I saw something very different.

Also, at no point on his entire career was Teague anywhere as good as Garland.

Here are Darius Garland's 4th quarter contributions per the play-by-play log on ESPN

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

Darius played the entire 4th quarter of a closeout game. He was dreadful. Please feel free to point out where YOU saw Darius Garland make any type of impact on the game. You defend Darius like he is kin over here. Come on. It is ok to call him out.

[Rendei]

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

The 8 second call was bad (even of they started that shot clock way earlier than they normally do off a missed free throw). But Garland wasn't awful, he was simply irrelevant on offense as were the rest of Mitchell's teammates. Okoro passed on an open look, but other than that, no one shrank from the moment, they just didn't get the opportunity. I only see two shots in the play-by-play by Mitchell's teammates before the 8 second mark.

We entered the 4th quarter up by 5. We didn't need Kobe. We didn't need Mitchell scoing 18 if it meant his teammates would score zero. If Garland is just going to be a decoy, then why even have him out there?

We needed 5 guys rebounding with Allen and Wade out. We needed to not give up so many second chance points. This is the second playoff game where Mitchell has taken more than 35 shots, the Cavs lost them both, and in both cases, we struggled to end the other team's possessions.

If Mitchell doesn't score 18, will the rest of the team magically be better? They went 0/6. I never got the impression that he wanted to take every shot. I got the impression that he wanted to pick his spots with that knee, but nobody else was stepping up. By Garland's own admission, he stopped being aggressive in the 4th quarter and it cost them. His words, not mine.

The shot clock did seem to start a beat early due to the loose ball, but Garland's been around long enough. There are giant shot clocks everywhere and he should know when the ball has to be over half court by now. By the way, that didn't even count as a turnover against him. That only counts as a team turnover, not an individual one. If you count that, then he would have had 4 turnovers, all in the 4th quarter. All of them.

[jbk1234]

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Please cite by minute and second mark in the 4th quarter the plays where Garland shied away from taking a shot. Seriously, I'll wait because you and I saw something very different.

Also, at no point on his entire career was Teague anywhere as good as Garland.

Here are Darius Garland's 4th quarter contributions per the play-by-play log on ESPN

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

Darius played the entire 4th quarter of a closeout game. He was dreadful. Please feel free to point out where YOU saw Darius Garland make any type of impact on the game. You defend Darius like he is kin over here. Come on. It is ok to call him out.

I'll ask again. Where did he pass up a shot? Besides a single non-attempt by Okoro, where did any of Mitchell's teammates pass up a shot?

[DowJones]

If you want more evidence of the lack of aggression I see form Garland for the series, look at the free throw numbers.

Darius Garland: 8 free throw attempts in 6 games
-Jalen Suggs: 25 free throw attempts in 6 games

Garland is supposed to be the offensive guy. These numbers show that he just isn't putting any kind of pressure on the defense. I am upset because I know Garland is capable of so much more.

[Rendei]

I swear people just bend reality to fit their pre-existing narratives. Garland's first shot in the 4th quarter was 3 point heave with 2 seconds left and the game well out of reach. Besides Mitchell, the only other Cavs to get shot attempts were Mobley and Morris on put back attempts with 8 seconds left.

Yes, Garland and Strus both had turnovers, but they both also managed to secure a defensive rebound and get bodies on players. Mitchell had a turnover and missed shots, and zero defensive rebounds. Without Allen and Wade, we needed all five guys rebounding. We didn't get it.

Here's the play-by-play:
https://www.espn.ph/nba/playbyplay/_/gameId/401655122

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Jeff Teague is not a comparison that I would pick, but it's also not terrible after this season. Garland was on pace to be much better than Teague a year ago today. This season was a large step back for him, and I don't know the reasons for that. The talent is definitely there.

[DowJones]

Please cite by minute and second mark in the 4th quarter the plays where Garland shied away from taking a shot. Seriously, I'll wait because you and I saw something very different.

Also, at no point on his entire career was Teague anywhere as good as Garland.

Here are Darius Garland's 4th quarter contributions per the play-by-play log on ESPN

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

Darius played the entire 4th quarter of a closeout game. He was dreadful. Please feel free to point out where YOU saw Darius Garland make any type of impact on the game. You defend Darius like he is kin over here. Come on. It is ok to call him out.

I'll ask again. Where did he pass up a shot? Besides a single non-attempt by Okoro, where did any of Mitchell's teammates pass up a shot?

I said Darius Garland shied away on the offensive end during the 4th quarter. The reason I said that is...

1. Darius Garland didn't attempt a single shot until a meaningless 31 foot attempt with 2 seconds left
2. Darius Garland didn't register a single assist
3. Darius Garland didn't get a single offensive rebound

You were the one that wanted to boil it down to specific moments where he passed up a wide open shot. I don't want my max-contract 21 year old All Star PG to be reduced to someone that can only shoot when he is wide open in the 4th quarter of a closeout game.

The Cavs needed Darius in the 4th quarter. Mitchell was struggling with the knee. Allen was out. Mobley was hobbling. The bench guys didn't have it. We needed our max contract PG to produce. Instead we got...

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

[DowJones]

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Jeff Teague is not a comparison that I would pick, but it's also not terrible after this season. Garland was on pace to be much better than Teague a year ago today. This season was a large step back for him, and I don't know the reasons for that. The talent is definitely there.

I don't think Garland is Teague now and I don't think he will be Teague 5 years from now but I do see a world where that is the case. Garland just has to be coached harder next season. I really think a new coaching staff that focuses on getting him right is all that is needed. I am still high on him despite his struggles this year.

[JujitsuFlip]

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

You are right to say Garland was awful down the stretch. He completely shied away on the offensive end, he was below average on defense, and that turnover he had at the end of the game was absolutely horrific.

Someone compared Garland to Jeff Teague yesterday..and..that frightens me. It frightens me because it is actually a decent comparison for who Garland was this year. It frightens me because I can see a world where Garland settles into that type of role. It frightens me because Cleveland is paying him the max. I think Garland has a ton of potential. I see no reason why he can't be a 23 point/8 assist guy. I see no reason why he can't be a consistent all-star. But this year--man. It has been tough.

Jeff Teague is not a comparison that I would pick, but it's also not terrible after this season. Garland was on pace to be much better than Teague a year ago today. This season was a large step back for him, and I don't know the reasons for that. The talent is definitely there.

He would go back to looking near All Star level if Mitchell is moved for a non ball dominant player.

[jbk1234]

You're right that Garland only missed one shot in the 4th, so I suppose my memory was a bit colored. But the rest? Sorry, he was awful. And his two rebounds don't make up for it. Mitchell could barely move out there, and you're blaming him for 1 turnover, 6 misses on 13 shots, and no rebounds? The rest of the team went 0/6 that quarter! 0 points combined! They tied his misses without a single made shot! He was all they had. How about Garland take more shots? Create an assist? The offense needs you, bro!

And to be fair, he had a good game overall. It was just in the 4th that he collapsed. And the 8 second call was soul crushing.

The 8 second call was bad (even of they started that shot clock way earlier than they normally do off a missed free throw). But Garland wasn't awful, he was simply irrelevant on offense as were the rest of Mitchell's teammates. Okoro passed on an open look, but other than that, no one shrank from the moment, they just didn't get the opportunity. I only see two shots in the play-by-play by Mitchell's teammates before the 8 second mark.

We entered the 4th quarter up by 5. We didn't need Kobe. We didn't need Mitchell scoing 18 if it meant his teammates would score zero. If Garland is just going to be a decoy, then why even have him out there?

We needed 5 guys rebounding with Allen and Wade out. We needed to not give up so many second chance points. This is the second playoff game where Mitchell has taken more than 35 shots, the Cavs lost them both, and in both cases, we struggled to end the other team's possessions.

If Mitchell doesn't score 18, will the rest of the team magically be better? They went 0/6. I never got the impression that he wanted to take every shot. I got the impression that he wanted to pick his spots with that knee, but nobody else was stepping up. By Garland's own admission, he stopped being aggressive in the 4th quarter and it cost them. His words, not mine.

The shot clock did seem to start a beat early due to the loose ball, but Garland's been around long enough. There are giant shot clocks everywhere and he should know when the ball has to be over half court by now. By the way, that didn't even count as a turnover against him. That only counts as a team turnover, not an individual one. If you count that, then he would have had 4 turnovers, all in the 4th quarter. All of them.

I know you want to include the three desperation attempts (two of which were put-back attempts off of Mitchell's miss) when the game was out of reach with 8 seconds left, but that's nonsense. Niang took a 3 three 36 seconds into the quarter, missed, and got yanked. Mobley had an unsuccessful put back attempt with 6:56 off a Mitchell miss. Mobley had the only actual shot attempt by a Cavalier not named Mitchell in the 11+ minutes between Niang's miss and the 8 second mark.

[Residual-Heat]

Shoulve scored 58

[jbk1234]

Here are Darius Garland's 4th quarter contributions per the play-by-play log on ESPN

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

Darius played the entire 4th quarter of a closeout game. He was dreadful. Please feel free to point out where YOU saw Darius Garland make any type of impact on the game. You defend Darius like he is kin over here. Come on. It is ok to call him out.

I'll ask again. Where did he pass up a shot? Besides a single non-attempt by Okoro, where did any of Mitchell's teammates pass up a shot?

I said Darius Garland shied away on the offensive end during the 4th quarter. The reason I said that is...

1. Darius Garland didn't attempt a single shot until a meaningless 31 foot attempt with 2 seconds left
2. Darius Garland didn't register a single assist
3. Darius Garland didn't get a single offensive rebound

You were the one that wanted to boil it down to specific moments where he passed up a wide open shot. I don't want my max-contract 21 year old All Star PG to be reduced to someone that can only shoot when he is wide open in the 4th quarter of a closeout game.

The Cavs needed Darius in the 4th quarter. Mitchell was struggling with the knee. Allen was out. Mobley was hobbling. The bench guys didn't have it. We needed our max contract PG to produce. Instead we got...

-(11:43) Darius Garland bad pass (Cole Anthony steals)
-(6:19) Darius Garland out of bounds lost ball turnover
-(5:34) Darius Garland shooting foul
-(4:31) Darius Garland bad pass (Franz Wagner steals)
-(2:56) Darius Garland 8 second turnover
-(2:28) Darius Garland defensive rebound
-(0:02) Darius Garland misses 31-foot three point pullup jump shot

Do want him to wave off Mitchell when Mitchell wants the ball? I mean it's kind of difficult for Darius to record an assist when the ball is in Mitchell's hands. It's kind of difficult to take a shot as well. Be specific in what you're suggesting Garland should've done.