What looked on paper to be a rockfight of a matchup turned out to be the Cleveland Cavaliers’ best offensive performance thus far. It was apparent very early on that Cleveland’s offense was playing at a different
pace and was in a higher gear than what the Detroit Pistons showed up with.
In the past three games, Donovan Mitchell’s performance was the straw that stirred the drink for the offense. Against the Pistons, it felt like Mitchell was just a part of the complete offensive showing. All five Cavalier starters found themselves in double digits as early as the beginning of the third quarter. Each player had their own offensive sequences where they put their identity on a stretch of the game.
Mitchell had some euro step and Shammgod sequences, leading the team with 35 points. Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley imposed their will down low, combining for 35 points and 18 rebounds. De’Andre Hunter flashed some passing skills and knocked down some threes, scoring 13 points. Oh, and Sam Merrill did his best impression of the Human Torch, going 3-6 from deep before leaving the game in the third quarter with a hip injury.
While the Cavaliers found their offensive groove, it looked like they played a complete game on the defensive end of the ball as well. The Pistons’ offense looked to be lacking a second layer outside of Cade Cunningham, having to set the table for the rest of their options. The Pistons, with five minutes left in the third, had shooting splits of 29% both for overall field goal percentage and three-point percentage. That’s not ideal.
Cunningham was held to a pedestrian stat line. He shot 3 for 14 and was limited to 4 assists on the night. Meanwhile, the Pistons’ defense wishes they could’ve replicated those efforts on Mitchell. Unfortunately for Detroit it felt like when Mitchell wanted to impose his will, he would. Mitchell, late in the third, was enlisted to bring the Cavaliers overall focus back during a mini run, and sure enough that was needed to close that window of opportunity for Detroit.
Next, the Cavaliers will travel to Boston to face the struggling Celtics. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.
