Donovan Mitchell pointed to a playoff game in Detroit on Friday when discussing criticism of Evan Mobley's development, saying Mobley stepped up when Mitchell and James Harden were being hounded and that nobody talks about it.
Mitchell spoke after the Cleveland Cavaliers practiced at Cleveland Clinic Courts in Independence, Ohio.
The game Mitchell described matches Game 5 of last season's Eastern Conference semifinals, the one played in Detroit with the series tied 2-2. He mentioned Game 6 and Game 5 in Detroit before settling on the stakes, a possible 3-2 deficit. Game 6 was played in Cleveland.
On May 13 at Little Caesars Arena, the top-seeded Pistons led by 15 points in the first half and 103-94 with just over two minutes left in regulation. Mobley's free throws tied the game at 103 with 45.2 seconds remaining.
Cleveland closed on a 13-0 run that carried into overtime and won 117-113.
Mobley finished with 19 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. Harden scored 30, Max Strus added 20, and Mitchell had 21.
Mitchell Says Mobley’s Successes Get Overlooked
Mitchell considers some of the scrutiny the cost of being a top-five pick. Cleveland drafted Mobley third overall in 2021 out of USC.
"I think there's a lot of different areas," Mitchell said. "I think that Ev does a lot of things that people don't discuss. I said it immediately. No one talks about the fact that James and I were being hounded, and Ev was the one that was stepping up in that game. It's like that never happened, like, you know what I mean? It's like, game, what was it, Game 6 at Detroit, Game 5 at Detroit? We didn't speak about that. We could have went down 3-2, like, you know what I mean? It's like we dismiss his successes and focus on the little things, right? And I think some of it is unfair, but, hey, top-five pick is what comes with it."
"And at the end of the day, he's just going to put his head down and do what he's got to do," Mitchell continued. "So some of it is, like, people really nitpicking on the things that didn't go well, but we really didn't say anything about things that went well. Like, he's a huge part of why we made the conference finals, you know what I mean? And I think people like to look at it as, like, 'Oh, man, he's not this, he's not that.' He's Evan Mobley. He's really good, he really helps us, he's going to show it again this year, and that's all that matters."
Cleveland lost Game 6 at home, 115-94, then won Game 7 in Detroit, 125-94, on May 17. The New York Knicks swept the Cavaliers in the conference finals.
Mobley led Cleveland with 24 points in Game 3 of that series.
Across 18 playoff games, Mobley averaged 17.0 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.8 blocks and shot 53.5% from the field.
In the regular season, he averaged 18.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.6 assists on 54.6% shooting. He made 29.7% of his 3-pointers after making 37.0% in 2024-25, his Defensive Player of the Year season.
Mobley still carries the conference finals loss, he said at media day.
Mitchell Says a Championship Is the Measure
A championship is the measure for Mitchell.
"At the end of the day, if we win a championship, no one's going to think [about that]," Mitchell said. "Evan did his job. We all got to do our job. Evan's working his ass off to do his job at the highest level, not necessarily please everybody else, you know what I'm saying? What they want."
Atkinson Says Drafting Mobley Changed Cavaliers’ Fortunes
Atkinson credits Mobley with changing the franchise's fortunes. Cleveland has made the playoffs in each of the last four seasons.
"The subtlety, the nuance, the subtlety of winning basketball, with all due respect to the pundits," Atkinson said. "He just does a lot of things people don't see. On both ends, maybe it doesn't scream out at you what he does, but the guy plays winning basketball. To me, it changed the fortune of this franchise. Drafting him, since we've drafted him, we've had tremendous success."
"I've said this before, I do think accolades mean stuff," Atkinson continued. "You want to look in the magazine and be like, 'Man, I want to be mentioned there.' I'm glad you told me about that."
HoopsHype ranked Mobley the fourth-best power forward in the NBA in September.
He had 7 rebounds in the Oct. 11 preseason win over Orlando, the first game Cleveland's projected starters played together. Mobley shot 6-of-14 and scored 14 points in the preseason finale, a 132-116 loss at Orlando on Oct. 13.
He is in the second season of a five-year extension that runs through 2030.
Cleveland opens the regular season Thursday, Oct. 22, against the Philadelphia 76ers at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.