LeBron James brought tears to everyone in Cleveland as its greatest export in 2016.
He brought Cavalier fans its first-ever National Basketball Association (NBA) championship in taking four out of seven games from the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. James gave the world the iconic, “Cleveland, this is for you!” message, however, does it happen a second time in Cleveland. The Cavs have not been to the Finals since James’ departure to the Los Angeles Lakers, but a six-time All-Star has the program in a position to win. Donovan “Spida” Mitchell leads a young team sharing the best record in the league at 56-12.
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Cleveland clinched a Central Division title and is the top-seed in the Eastern Conference. Mitchell is having a career year for rebounds (5.1), assists (6.1) and steals (1.8) per game. The 6-foot-3, 218-pound shooting guard is averaging 24.1 points per game.
Mitchell had a double-double of 18 points and 11 assists in the Cavs’ loss to the Clippers, yet Cleveland has been one of the most exciting, young teams to watch in the league. Mitchell is one of seven players totaling double figures in points, but he is the catalyst behind a program wanting to show it is great without LeBron James. The NBA playoffs will arrive on April 19 and a matchup that fans and media would love is Cleveland versus L.A. If the Cavs could deny James a fifth title, it would be epic.
We will see what happens, but Mitchell has had a resurgence with the Cavs since leaving the Utah Jazz.
Stephen M. Smith is a writer for Ball Exclusives. You can follow him him X via @CoachingMSmith.
