The Cleveland Cavaliers have lost their last three games. The mini-losing streak has caught everybody off guard. After all, Kenny Atkinson’s team has been dominant throughout the season.
During his postgame news conference following the Cavaliers’ 119-123 loss to the Sacramento Kings on March 19, Donovan Mitchell had an unexpected response.
“I’m trying to refrain from using the word happy,” Mitchell said. “I’m kind of a sicko, so I enjoy this. This is what makes the season fun — going through adversity.”
Mitchell, 28, clearly isn’t worried about the Cavaliers current slide. The All-Star guard likely understands that an NBA season is full of ebbs and flows. Losing three straight games isn’t going to impact the Cavaliers’ chances of winning a championship later this year.
However, Mitchell must also understand that three-game skids can quickly develop into a bigger problem. As such, he and his teammates must fight to get back in the win column. Cleveland can’t afford to hit a rough patch so late in the season, especially with the first round of the playoffs looming.
Kenny Atkinson Calls Out Lack of Discipline
When speaking to the media following the Cavaliers 119-132 loss to the LA Clippers on Thursday, March 18, Atkinson questioned his team’s discipline.
“They played great,” Atkinson said. “Elite shot-making performance by them. A poor defensive performance by us…Our lack of discipline, fouling them, putting them on the line. And then giving them second-chance points. Even though they did have an elite shot-making game, we didn’t do the little things. We weren’t disciplined on the margins. That’s why you give up 132 points.”
Cleveland has dropped 13 games this season. Their next game is against the Phoenix Suns on Friday, March 21. Atkinson’s team must win that contest if they want to avoid the inevitable swath of questions that would come via a four-game losing streak. Nevertheless, regardless of what happens against Phoenix, Cleveland has more than enough time to get things back on track.
Cavaliers’ Need to be Challenged Defensively
The Orlando Magic got the ball rolling on the Cavaliers’ current slide. Jamahl Mosley’s team secured a big win over Atkinson’s team on March 16. During his postgame news conference, Mosley detailed how to get a good result against a Cavaliers team that boasts the best record in the NBA.
“I think challenging them defensively,” Mosley said. “You gave them a 38-point first quarter, and I think us understanding exactly who we are and what we need to do. We made shots tonight, which is good, but we challenged them defensively to come out and play the certain style of Magic basketball that we know we can play, flying around. We still have to be better at cleaning up the offensive rebounding, but our job of getting guys off the line, flying around, covering for each other [and] playing with multiple effort all night long.”
Orlando provided a blueprint on how to rattle the Cavaliers’ roster. Atkinson’s team must find a way to respond when teams look to put them on their back foot. If they can’t, then their route to the Eastern Conference finals could look far more difficult.
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