The Cleveland Cavaliers’ dominant Game 2 victory over the Toronto Raptors saw Donovan Mitchell drop 30 points in a sublime showing. But away from his tally, head coach Kenny Atkinson saw something else that he liked about his superstar.
The Cavs never trailed as they successfully protected home court with a 115-105 win over the Raptors to take a 2-0 series lead, and now head to Toronto for Game 3 on Thursday night. Mitchell was the engine behind the scoring, but Atkinson believes his great form stems from his altered approach to scoring.
Since James Harden arrived in Cleveland in February, he has adjusted his playing style effortlessly. He had 28 points in the win. Atkinson has seen Harden’s arrival benefit Mitchell’s game as well, as they are constantly in conversation, and he sees Mitchell as more of a leader.
“They’re constantly in constant conversations about what’s going on out there, and in a huddle, they are de facto leaders,” Atkinson said.
“They’re vocal, and they see what’s going on both sides of the court, and tonight was one of these games where you had to be really sharp because they were changing lineups, they were changing coverages, they went small, and they go back big for a few minutes as small, so things were moving at us fast. That’s why it helps to have smart guys like that.”
Cleveland has now beaten Toronto in 12 consecutive playoff games, matching the NBA record for most straight postseason wins over a single opponent.
The run dates back to the 2016 Eastern Conference finals, when the Cavaliers claimed the last two games, then followed with four-game sweeps in the 2017 and 2018 second rounds.
Cleveland also has a 12-game winning streak against Detroit and Atlanta, while the Los Angeles Lakers had a 12-game run against Seattle from 1980 through to 1989. They can stand alone at the summit with a win on Thursday.
However, Toronto showed more life in transition, which is something for Atkinson to ponder. The Raptors scored 16 fast-break points after managing just three in Saturday’s game. However, the Raptors also hurt themselves with a season-high 22 turnovers, which the Cavs converted into 22 points.
“They threw the kitchen sink at us, gave us a lot of different looks and [we] kept our poise,” Atkinson said. “Donovan and James closed it for us, but I thought our defense kind of forced them to go small. This is what the playoffs are about. They came at us hard, and we responded.”
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