On the third On the day of training camp, the Cleveland Cavaliers took a break from the basketball court. It was October 2, a humid, 87-degree afternoon in Bradenton, Florida, and the Cavaliers were hosting camp at IMG Academy, a multi-sport facility that Kenny Atkinson compares to an Olympic village.
Atkinson’s goal was to create a training camp that focused on more than just basketball, breaking up the monotony that can build up over a long season and giving the Cavaliers a chance to make connections they would rely on all season long.
So the team took to the track in the afternoon for a cardio-focused workout. It was near the baseball field.
Jaylon Tyson, the sophomore guard who was pushed into the starting lineup due to injuries, challenged the team’s star player, Donovan Mitchell, to meet him on the diamond, ensuring he could get a hit from him.
The whole team joined them.
Mitchell took the mound. His father, Donovan Sr., played baseball in the minors and worked with the Mets for the past two decades, passing on his love of the game to his son. Mitchell played baseball during high school and insists he could have played professionally.
Finally, after a few whiffs, Tyson made contact, a false tip, but one that quickly turned into a full-team hitting practice.
With his baseball background, Mitchell was the only player the team trusted to play. When it was Mitchell’s turn to bat, and some members of the IMG Academy were available to throw, the Cavs star hit a pair of home runs — the Cavs’ version of Shohei Ohtani, at least among a group of clubs.
“Just showing off a little bit,” Mitchell told ESPN. “Show what I can do.”
Mitchell is in his fourth season to show what he can do for the Cavaliers. It’s also the fourth year for players Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland, the quartet that has turned the Cavaliers into contenders once again in the Eastern Conference.
But Mitchell has never played in the conference finals as the Cavaliers have fallen short in the playoffs the past two seasons, losing in the semifinals.
In 2024, they fell in five games to the Boston Celtics, who went on to win the NBA Championship. The Cavaliers fired their coach J.B. Bickerstaff that summer and hired Atkinson.
In Atkinson’s first season, Cleveland racked up 64 wins during the regular season and swept the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs, causing Cleveland to consider a return to the Finals. But then the Cavaliers were dispatched, once again in the second round, with a five-game rout at the hands of the Indiana Pacers, with the Cavaliers’ lineup affected by injuries to Garland, Mobley and DeAndre Hunter.
This was a different kind of monotony, not something a scheduling adjustment could solve.
Hunter responded A series in his mind all summer, watching hours of tape to determine what problems to address, what gaps to fill. He skipped the film of the wins but focused on the losses.
He arrives at a revealing, but perhaps unsatisfactory, conclusion.
“It was more mental than anything else,” Hunter told ESPN. “The first game, this is the game we were supposed to win. We won that game and the series is completely different. We were kind of weak mentally, at times, and they were stronger mentally.”
The Pacers jumped out to an early 11-point lead at Cleveland in Game 1, then closed the fourth quarter on a 20-10 run to seal the win.
“I don’t think it was a physical thing. I don’t think there was any skills gap,” Hunter continued. “I literally think it was all mental.”
Once again, Cleveland started the season as the favorite to win the Eastern Conference, according to ESPN BET, and had the third-best odds of taking home the Larry O’Brien Trophy — higher expectations than in any year since LeBron James’ final season with the team in 2017-18.
So Cleveland is doubling down on last season’s edict — that third-year big man Evan Mobley needs to be its center of operations.
The Cavaliers had their most successful regular season in a decade last season by relying less on Mitchell and more on Mobley. And perhaps for good reason.
Over the past two seasons, Mitchell has had 11 30-point games. The Cavs are just 5-6 in those games.
For the team to reach the conference finals, the Cavaliers realize they need to rely less on Mitchell as an everyday player like Otani; Create a more dynamic and diverse offense, with new players Hunter and Lonzo Ball adding to an already strong ecosystem; Mobley was given more responsibility.
The Cavs are 4-3 so far – a relatively inauspicious start; They didn’t lose their third game last season until November 29. Their defense remains in the top 10, but their offense ranks 26th in the league.
“These little tests can help us in the playoffs,” Hunter said. “We’ve had a long season, and there’s a lot of tests along that journey. We endure those tests, and that’s going to keep us ready. And honestly, losing like that in the playoffs, whether it’s a full year or not, sets you up for it the next time you face that adversity.”
Mitchell also sees progress in early decline. He said that after racing through last regular season, their mission this season will be to make sure they are in a better position to succeed in the playoffs.
“Habits, man. You can’t just figure them out,” Mitchell said. “We still have to build. That’s what the whole regular season is about. You can’t look at it and say just wait until April, because all the things you do in April, the foundation is laid throughout the season.”
Mitchell got the word out It was announced in mid-August that the Cavaliers would be down two starters to start the season.
Garland’s toe surgery, after the end of the playoffs in June, would sideline him for the start of the season, and then Mitchell learned Max Strus needed to repair a fracture in his left foot.
Mitchell took a break from basketball after a disappointing second playoff loss. He got engaged to R&B singer Coco Jones in July. He delved deeper into the Mets fanbase, joining New York shortstop Francisco Lindor for an hour on his podcast. Losing the playoff was painful, and he wanted to clear his head.
But then news hit that in addition to being a starter, Ty Jerome, the Cavaliers’ leading scorer off the bench, had signed with the Memphis Grizzlies in free agency. Mitchell’s real season has begun.
“We understand that this has happened and we’re done,” Mitchell told ESPN. “Now it’s like, well, how do we not do s— next time?”
He soon reached out to Mobley.
Injuries played a role in the consecutive playoff exits. Mitchell himself missed the final two games in the 2024 conference semifinals against Boston. In the series against the Pacers in 2025, Garland missed the first two games. Mobley and Hunter missed the second game. Mitchell suffered an ankle injury at the end of the series.
Mitchell is coming off a season in which he posted a 30.9% usage rate, his lowest since his rookie season in 2017-18. But during the playoffs, due in part to injuries surrounding him, the percentage rose to 37.2%, the highest of any player in the playoffs and one of the highest rates of his career.
“I had a conversation with (Mobley), and it was like, ‘He made a move last year,’” Mitchell said. “This is his first year having the ball like that. Now it’s like, ‘Hey, I’m not open…it’s you.’ This offensive creativity comes from you. “This is what we expect from you.” But with that also comes great responsibility.
Mobley, 24, set career highs in points, field goal attempts, 3-pointers and free throws made last season, in addition to winning Defensive Player of the Year honors. It earned him an All-Star Game appearance and his first All-NBA nod, but the Cavs still believe they are only scratching the surface of his potential.
“He handles the ball more,” Atkinson said. “He’s got to be a playmaker for us, and you’ll see an increase in his usage again. But I want that balance — between the perimeter and getting him the ball inside and getting him the paint.”
Mobley’s usage rate is at 24.7% so far this season, which is a significant increase from the 23.2% he posted in 2024-25. He has taken on more gaming industry responsibilities. He averaged 4.4 assists per game.
“I just have to continue to face it and face the challenges,” Mobley told ESPN.
These challenges are still in question. After shooting 49.1% last season, the second-best mark in the league (behind Denver’s 50.6%), the Cavaliers started this season shooting 44.5%, which ranked 24th in the NBA. They make the same number of 3s, but need four more shot attempts per game to get there.
Mitchell has scored 33.7% of the Cavaliers’ points this season, the highest percentage during his four-year tenure in Cleveland, and he makes many of his shots off the dribble. According to ESPN research, 81% of his two-pointers are unassisted, and he is getting more points than ever from the mid-range, 13.6% of his points compared to 9.9% last season.
“I don’t have the exact answer for you right now,” Mitchell said before the season. “It has to be a feeling. A lot of it also has to do with where (Evan) is or where Dre is and being ready for whatever comes.
“It’s easy to say, ‘Oh, I’ve kind of taken a step back’ — but sometimes the situation calls for it. “People have been hurt, it’s not just ‘fuck, here I am’.”
That’s why Mitchell leaned so heavily on Mobley, trying to instill confidence and aggressiveness in the Cavaliers’ younger star.
“I had to find that at an early age when I first got into the league,” Mitchell said. “It’s a process. You see it as aggressive, which we’ll accept. Now it’s like you’re smart about it too?”
“I’m in his ear nonstop… ‘Hey, you’re a threat, or there’s a pass here, or stop passing the damn ball, there’s no way Player
The Cavs also know there are reinforcements on their way.
Atkinson said last week that Garland, who remains the best playmaker, was close to making his first appearance of the season. Garland went through training camp with the Cavs’ G League team and has fully recovered from his toe injury.
For his part, Paul has really helped push the pace for the 10th-place team, and has recorded at least one steal in each of the past five games he’s played.
“(This team) has everything you want in this league,” Ball told ESPN. “Especially the way our seniors are now. We have freshmen seniors, so for me, it’s just about coming in and doing my job.”
Within the organization, though, the Cavaliers know their season depends on this big, young prospect. They were impressed with Mobley’s willingness to have more offense, as well as anchor the defense. They know this could be the key to another playoff run.
“If you watch him this season, he’s boxed in,” Cavans president Colby Altman said before the season. He added: “He is really serious about making that leap to become one of the top five players in the league. He has matured, he is still 24 years old, but now he is a mature man in terms of his body and his emotions.”
He added: “I think he is ready to take the next step. I always say that: as he goes, we go.”
