Playoff intensity intensifies as Donovan Mitchell drops 31 against the Atlanta Hawks. With two games to go in the regular season, the Cleveland Cavaliers are already in postseason mode.
The NBA playoffs are nearly here. Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell knows it and he's adjusting accordingly on the court.
In recent games, Mitchell has been noticeably more inclined to get downhill and get to the basket. Something that was on full display again on Wednesday during a 122-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks.
Mitchell took 19 total shots for the game, but just four of them came from beyond the arc. 13 of them came within a couple feet of the basket or just outside the paint, with Mitchell diving toward the basket and releasing one of his signature layups, or stopping to attempt a pull-up.
"It's that time of year," Mitchell asserted after the game. "You play like that for 82 games, y'all probably won't see me in a week or two weeks, you know? It's hard to do, especially at my size, right? So you gotta find ways to adapt."
It's a common practice for Mitchell this time of year, granted, an injury left him prioritizing his health over the final few games of last season rather than getting mentally and physically adjusted for the playoffs.
In 2026, Mitchell has treated his last few games as an opportunity to test out the more grueling style of play. It's a style that has birthed playoff gems like his 48 and 43-point performances against the Indiana Pacers last year.
Wednesday felt like the real deal for Mitchell, likely by design.
"Now you gotta stop me from getting downhill now the kick-outs come. Now the double-teams come. Now it makes everybody else's life easier. So, just trying to be aggressive in any way possible. I don't even know how many threes I took, or, I don't even think I made one for real. Just being able to try and get to there, get to the free throw line, slow the game down and put a lot of pressure on the defense."
As things stand right now, the Cavs are slated to be the four seed in the Eastern Conference and would have home court advantage for a first-round series against the Hawks, who are currently the five seed.
Even head coach Kenny Atkinson admitted the matchup felt like a playoff game. He treated it as such, playing his best starting lineup and trying different concoctions of the new "core 4" with Max Strus inserted to close out the first half, then Sam Merrill to close out the game.
This was every bit a postseason dress rehearsal as game 80 of the regular season can be.
"I loved the rep we got tonight. That was a playoff type game," Atkinson said. "The ups and downs. We're up, and then they come back, and then we gotta execute. We did a lot of good things. Obviously, gotta clean up some stuff, but a great rep and having our core four out there, at the end."
With two games remaining, Atkinson says he'd like to get his starting group more time together. He also admitted to becoming a prisoner of scoreboard watching in the coming days, as the team evaluates what seeding is best for their postseason chances.
Following Sunday's season finale with the Washington Wizards, Cleveland will get a much-deserved week off to heal up and prepare for the playoffs.
However, Atkinson decides to play these final two games and attempts to keep his team in rhythm throughout the week off, a playoff mindset has already set in inside the Cavs locker room. Wednesday's win was a taste of what's to come for Mitchell and company.
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