CLEVELAND — After the Cavaliers notched their 11th straight win Wednesday night with a thrilling 129-122 victory over the Thunder in the most anticipated game of the regular season, Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson walked into the locker room and received a message from his players.
“The players said, ‘We didn’t win this game last year,’” Atkinson said.
On one night, franchise cornerstone Donovan Mitchell shot 3-for-16, and Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen — who combined for 46 points and 21 rebounds — were ferocious inside, frequently battling multiple Thunder defenders to secure offensive rebounds or fly over them. To throw easy dunks. Darius Garland, who spent last season suffering from a broken jaw and its residual effects, had 18 points and seven assists, including a game-sealing bucket in the final seconds.
As a result, Cleveland ended Oklahoma City’s 15-game winning streak and improved to 32-4, tying the Golden State Warriors’ record of 73 regular-season victories in 2015-16.
“It just speaks to our growth,” Mitchell said. “I told everyone after the game, as a unit, we didn’t win this game last year… Everyone involved in the game did something positive to impact the game, whether it was scoring, rebounding, defending, whatever it was. This is a team win, and this is what it’s going to take.” To become the team we want to be.
“And honestly, this is a big win. I think we’re all excited about it, and obviously this is one game and no championship was won tonight, but it’s something to be proud of.”
It’s only the first full week of January, but the hype and buildup to this game — featuring two teams that were on pace for 70 wins — has given it the feel of being played in the spring instead. The fact that both teams had not played since Sunday, giving them two full days to prepare, helped add to what both coaches described as an “elevated” atmosphere, which was seen as an opportunity for their young squad to learn and grow ahead of what was to come. They hope to make deep postseason runs.
“It’s pretty cool,” Atkinson said of the energy surrounding the game during his pregame press conference. “It’s like you’re in the NCAA Tournament. It’s like, ‘Man, we’re here.’ There’s that kind of buzz.”
Despite all the buildup leading up to the game, the product lived up to expectations. It was an exciting back-and-forth game with 30 lead changes, eight ties, tons of back-and-forth action, and plenty of ball movement. While there were many contributors to Cleveland’s win — from Max Strus and Ty Jerome going 12-for-14 for 32 points off the bench to the rebounding and play of Garland — the thing that stood out the most was Mobley’s continued rise.
The fourth-year big man, who finished with 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, a steal and a block in 35 minutes, gave the Thunder fits on both ends. He repeatedly caused problems for Oklahoma City when attacking the basket, and in a sign of how much he has improved since last season, with the biggest possession of the game — with Cleveland taking a three-point lead with just over a minute remaining — Mobley. It was isolated at the top of the key, hit directly into Isaiah Hartenstein’s chest and finished over him to put the game out of reach.
“They’ve finally learned who Evan Mobley is, and they still have a lot to learn,” Allen said of the national crowd watching the game. “He was doing everything for us. On the defensive side, he was stopping. And on the offensive side, we literally ran the ball over and gave him the ball and said go to work, and he got us a big bucket of the game.” “The end so they learn about it.”
For the Thunder, it was a learning opportunity. MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points but took 27 shots to get them, while Jalen Williams scored 25 points and had nine assists in a big performance from a tough game on Sunday against the Boston Celtics.
“It’s very clear that we belong here. I don’t think we’re waiting for the national media to say, ‘Oh, they belong.’ I think we knew that, but you’ve got to go out there and prove it. We went 31-4, and people still They can’t believe it. We won tonight, and people still don’t believe us.”
Donovan Mitchell
While the Thunder struggled to contain Mobley and Allen on the boards, the presence of 7-foot-1 Chet Holmgren — as well as defensive star Alex Caruso — on the sideline in street clothes was a reminder of how different a game could potentially be between these two. The teams could look within a few months with both operating at full capacity.
It was also the second high-profile game the Thunder have lost in recent weeks, after losing the NBA Cup Final — though it didn’t count in the standings — to the Milwaukee Bucks. Asked if there was anything to take away from these two matches, or if there was anything that tied them together, Gilgeous-Alexander shrugged.
He said: “No.” “We’ve only lost twice in a month and a half. It’s unfortunate that they’re high-level matches, but like I said, we’re human out there. We can’t be perfect. And we lose twice in one month. I’ll get half no matter what stage they’re at.”
For the Cavaliers, though, it was a high-profile game that cemented their belief that they are every bit as title contenders as their record says they are.
“It’s very clear that we belong here,” Mitchell said. “I don’t think we’re waiting for the national media to say, ‘Oh, they belong.’ I think we knew that, but you have to go out there and prove it.
“We went up 31-4, and people still can’t believe it. We won tonight, and people still can’t believe it. We’ve got to continue to just be us.”