Donovan Mitchell drew plenty of heat after a late sequence in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 114-111 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday at State Farm Arena, and it all centered on one possession that fans could not get past.
With Cleveland trailing 91-84 in the fourth quarter, Jaylon Tyson looked ready to hit a wide-open Mario Hezonja in the corner. Instead, Mitchell stepped in, took the ball, and then missed the three-pointer that followed.
The moment took off immediately on social media, and the reaction on X was brutal. One fan wrote, “Just a selfish a** player.
I think it’s time to admit it,” while another said, “He did this s*** on purpose, smh, just nasty work,” after noting that Hezonja had previously waived off Mitchell. Another fan posted, “Wild… if he ends his career ringless, come back to this moment,” and one more added, “Don solo lost the f***ing game, too,” suggesting Mitchell had cost Cleveland the game.
A different fan pushed for head coach Kenny Atkinson to address it, saying, “Ridiculous. I hope Atkinson addressed him on that after the game. 1/9 from the three, btw,”
Mitchell’s shooting line backed up the frustration. He finished 1-9 from deep and had a rough night overall, including an ill-advised deep three when the Cavaliers were down three in the final seconds, followed by another miss after he grabbed the offensive rebound.
He also went 7-19 from the field and ended with 22 points, three rebounds, three assists, and one steal. It marked the seven-time All-Star’s worst shooting night of the season.
The final shot in regulation also became part of the debate. One fan asked, “How does Donovan Mitchell manage to find the worst possible shots to shoot at the end of games”
There was at least one counterpoint to the criticism. NBA analyst Samson Folk argued on X that Hezonja was actually supposed to be cutting on the play rather than staying in the corner.
“I believe DMitch has a lot of shortcomings, but Mario was supposed to be cutting baseline here; that’s why DMitch was filling to the corner,” Samson wrote. Samson also described it as a designed cut in the offense.
Hezonja finished with 10 points, six rebounds, two assists, and one steal in 19 minutes off the bench. He went 4-6 from the field and 2-3 from three.
Whether Mitchell, Hezonja, or Atkinson addresses the play later remains to be seen, but the Cavaliers will have to move on quickly. They came into the game riding a three-game win streak and are now 3-2.
Next up is a matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.
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