Donovan Mitchell will do everything for a Cleveland Cavaliers win in Saturday night’s Game 1 of their NBA Playoffs series against the New York Knicks, and there’s arguably nothing that would best encapsulate that than this save he made in the first half of the contest.
Donovan Mitchell will do whatever it takes for the Cavs to succeed, which is also why he’s already won the hearts of Cleveland fans in just his first season with the team. However, the same fans probably couldn’t get through finishing that video of Mitchell hurling himself into the crowd in an attempt to get the leather without wincing.
This game against the Knicks is big deal for the Cavs not only because it’s the playoffs but also because this is the first postseason contest for them since the LeBron James era. Prior to this, the last playoff game the Cavs played was in 2018 when they lost to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals.
Donovan Mitchell, who was traded by the Utah Jazz to Cleveland last offseason, led the Cavs in the first half with 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field to go with four rebounds, an assist, and two steals. Darius Garland had 10 points in the first half, while the other three Cavs starters combined for 12 points before the end of the first half.
The Knicks are not an easy assignment for the Cavs, with many viewing this series as the most competitive of all the pairings in the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
