As the Cleveland Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson watched his team put the finishing touches on a 131-108 win against the Toronto Raptors, his veteran forward Tristan Thompson took things a little too far in the final seconds. Instead of dribbling out the game clock with a 20+ point lead intact, Thompson dunked the ball with four seconds left on the game clock. It was an unclassy move for a Cavs team with championship aspirations this season.
It also left Atkinson at a loss for words during his media availability after the game, per ESPN.
“I’m not sure what he was thinking,” Atkinson said. “Sometimes, though, you’re playing the game, and you just have a reaction. I know with Tristan, there’s no bad intention there. I think just sometimes you’re playing, and the goal of the game is to score. Unfortunate.”
Some Raptors players took exception to Thompson’s dunk, including Scottie Barnes, who had words for the Cavs veteran in a confrontation moments after the final buzzer. Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic addressed Thompson after the game.
“I think what Tristan did there was no class and disrespectful,” Rajakovic said. “I’m not going to stand for that, for sure. I love when my team stands up for themselves. That was no class.”
Tristan Thompson checked in for Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson in the game’s final four minutes. After seven Cavs players scored in double figures, including the entire starting lineup. Donovan Mitchell led with 21 points. De’Andre Hunter’s 18 points led the second unit, and Sam Merrill added 16.
Evan Mobley’s ‘championship’ take after De’Andre Hunter trade
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After the Cavs traded for De’Andre Hunter before the NBA trade deadline to solidify the team’s depth ahead of the postseason, Evan Mobley discussed his championship aspirations for the Cavs. For a team with the best record in the association, leading the Eastern Conference standings throughout the 2024-25 campaign, they’re certainly in the conversation.
Mobley discussed the Cavs’ chances of winning a title this year, per the Akron Beacon Journal’s Nate Ulrich.
“What’s possible is championship,” Mobley said. “I feel like we had that caliber of team [before the trade], we’re on that track right now and so that’s the whole goal. And adding a player [like Hunter] just boosts it even more.”
The Cavs will be well-represented with Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, and Mobley at the 2025 All-Star Game. It’s the first time they’ve sent three players to the star-studded event since LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love represented the 2016-17 team.
