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2 studs and 1 dud for Cavs from Wednesday’s win over the Mavericks

By Justin Brownlow

Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images /

Cavs stud No. 1: Donovan Mitchell

At the end of the year, I doubt that Mitchell will factor into the MVP race much at all. With superstars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, and Nikola Jokic putting up insane numbers, it’s not really a surprise. However, as I mentioned in my stud and dud article last weekend, Mitchell has been incredibly valuable to this Cavalier team, and last night proved it.

Not only was Mitchell great, with 30 points, including shooting 6-of-9 from three-point range, but the offense looked much smoother with him out there. Darius Garland looked much more comfortable, and wasn’t forced to do as much off the dribble, which led to him having zero turnovers. In addition to that, Allen and Mobley were both incredibly efficient, combining to shoot 11-of-16 from the field, and nailed all six of their combined free throws.

Without Mitchell in the lineup the Cavs are 2-2 this season, but that doesn’t quite tell the whole story. He really is the piece that gets the entire offense flowing. He takes pressure off of Garland, and provides easy looks for the bigs, and guys like Lamar Stevens.

As I’ve said, Mitchell won’t get a lot of love in the MVP race, but he should get more.