A franchise star in the position of someone like Donovan Mitchell would have every right to complain about how this season has gone. Instead, the perennial All-Star is allowing the Cleveland Cavaliers the necessary breathing room to operate without pressure.
Given how good last year's campaign looked for the Cavaliers, many have been (understandably) frustrated about how the 2025-26 season has gone. Mitchell is not letting comparisons to Cleveland's 64-win campaign create a dark cloud around him or the team.
"I really wish we would all just leave last year alone," Mitchell told reporters. "This is going to be different. How we're going to go about it is different. ... We've got different guys in and out. ... It's at the point now where I don't really care how we do it as long as we continue to win games."
The Cavaliers star thought the team had done a great job 'as a collective' when considering everything that had been thrown at them this season. Mitchell believed in his teammates being capable of continuing to building and finding ways to win.
Donovan Mitchell made it clear he’s not interested in forcing Cleveland's hand
This Cavaliers season has been inconsistent, frustrating, and downright ugly at times. Even through that struggle, Cleveland could still be worse off.
With the state of the Eastern Conference, the Cavs have been afforded the wiggle room to be all of those things listed above and still come out the other end in a comfortable position. At 27-20, they are current fifth in the East, and only two games back of the Boston Celtics for second.
That should not absolve them of accountability for when things look bad. However, no one is forcing them to pay a monstrous tax for a mediocre game or an ugly stretch of performances just yet.
As such, the Cavaliers front office has stood still, and are expected to hold firm on that. Mitchell does not sound like a star who will move to disrupt that cautious, lenient, and patient approach.
Eventually, the hourglass will run out on Cleveland, though. When it does, the Cavaliers need to be a much better team than they have proven to be this season. The Eastern Conference may not punish them for their level of play now, but the NBA Playoffs certainly will — the deeper they advance.
The Cavs do not need to be a well-oiled machine now. However, if they do not have the habits necessary in place by the spring, it will be a short campaign (yet again) in the postseason.