The Cleveland Cavaliers were effectively eliminated from the playoffs on Monday night after suffering a 130-93 Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. While Game 4 was played in Cleveland, Knicks fans swarmed the arena and made it seem more like an away game for the Cavs. Shortly after the end of the contest, Donovan Mitchell opened up about all the talk he heard from the opposing team’s fans throughout the series.
During the postgame press conference, the 29-year-old guard opened up about how loud Knicks fans had been in the series, even during the Cavs’ home games. While he was hopeful to shut them up by winning games, that simply did not come to fruition. Mitchell explained how he is going to use that chatter, along with all of the talk he’s going to hear in the offseason, as fuel for next year.
“I know I made the comment about Knicks fans in our building the other game,” said Mitchell. “We didn’t shut ’em up. So you have to look inward – what more can we do? That and the fact that I’ve got to go home and hear about it for the next 3-4 months.”
"I know I made the comment about Knicks fans in our building the other game. We didn't shut 'em up. So you have to look inward – what more can we do? That and the the fact that I've got to go home and hear about it for the next 3-4 months"
– Donovan Mitchell on motivation pic.twitter.com/EFKNLxl7Bt
— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) May 26, 2026
It was a good run while it lasted. The Cavs managed to get the better of the Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons in the playoffs, beating both franchises in seven games in the first two rounds of the playoffs. But the Knicks were a different beast, as Cleveland just didn’t have enough firepower to combat Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, and the rest of the roster.
Although it was a tough way to go out, Donovan Mitchell can at least keep his head held high. The nine-year veteran was the best player on the team in the Eastern Conference Finals, averaging 27.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.5 steals while shooting 47.5% from the field and hitting 37.8% of his three-point attempts.
