Donovan Mitchell has never been this close to the conference finals - and in turn, making his dreams a reality.
In five seasons with the Utah Jazz, the closest that Mitchell ever got was a 4-2 loss in the second round to the LA Clippers. With the Cleveland Cavaliers, Mitchell has lost in five games each of the last two second rounds.
Now Spida and the Cavaliers are one game away from the bright unknown, winning a hard-fought Game 5 in overtime to take a 3-2 series lead. Win one of the next two games, and they will advance to the Eastern Conference Finals to face the New York Knicks -- the first such appearance for most of the players on the roster.
The Cavaliers fought their way to victory
The victory did not come easily. The Detroit Pistons were ahead at halftime, and again took the lead late in the fourth quarter. With three minutes to go, a Tobias Harris 3-pointer put the Pistons up by nine points. A Cavaliers offense that seemed out of gas and out of options faced a daunting cliff to climb -- and climb quickly.
Mitchell was clearly hampered by an ankle injury he sustained running into a baseline cameraman, and it was James Harden who carried the team through much of the game. But when the lights got brightest and the Cavaliers' season was on the ropes, it was Mitchell who came alive.
He and Evan Mobley brought Cleveland all the way back in regulation, and then Mitchell poured in key buckets in overtime to put the Cavaliers ahead for good. In the first 45 minutes of the game, Mitchell scored 12 points; in the final eight, he scored nine points, all of them critical baskets to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
What once seemed improbable, given the tenacity of the Toronto Raptors in the first round and the physicality of the Detroit Pistons in the second, has now become likely: the Cleveland Cavaliers are now heavy favorites to make the Eastern Conference Finals.
It has been the goal for this era of Cavaliers basketball, ever since the combination of trading for Mitchell and the ascension of Evan Mobley pushed Cleveland into the realm of East contenders. And it's been Mitchell's personal goal as well.
Donovan Mitchell really wants this
Two years ago, the Cavaliers entered the playoffs looking to prove themselves, and Mitchell was asked about how he defined success. He gave a nod to making the playoffs and playing in the first two rounds, but he made clear what the standard of success was: "But my goal is to make the conference finals and get to the NBA Finals, you know what I mean? That’s what I’m judged on.”
Mitchell, like most stars, wants to be considered one of the greats. He wants to put his imprint on the history of the league, he wants to win a title, he wants to matter. It is extremely hard to do that if you never even make it out of the second round. Mitchell gets it.
The defining moment of his career could be looming before him. He wants to compete for championships. The Cavaliers were not supposed to have that sort of team after the season that they just had, but they are now only one game away from upsetting the No. 1 seed and making the Conference Finals.
From there, more work will await. The Knicks look like a buzzsaw cutting through the competition. Cleveland will not be favored to win and make the NBA Finals.
But for Mitchell, it will be a milestone achieved, a goal realized. His longtime wish has been to get off that list of "best players to never make the conference finals," and now he is ever-so-close to getting there.
One more win, and that wish will be granted.
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