The Cavaliers walked into Thursday night already carrying a built-in disadvantage: the second night of a back-to-back, on the road, against a Hawks team that looks like a playoff group. And still, they pushed Atlanta all the way to the final possession in a 114-111 loss.
That’s what makes this one sting just a little less. Cleveland never fully controlled the game, but it never disappeared either.
Donovan Mitchell had two chances late to force a tie, and neither look went down. Sometimes that’s all there is to it - the shot is there, the result isn’t.
For a stretch, the Cavs opened with real energy. They were sharp, they moved the ball, and they looked efficient.
That lasted about a quarter before the pace and precision started to slip. The offense got sticky.
The defense looked a step behind. The ball stopped moving with the same snap.
At one point, with about 8 minutes left, it looked like Cleveland might be running on fumes. That turned out to be the wrong read.
The Cavaliers found another gear and kept clawing. Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, Sam Merrill - the group started doing the little things that keep a team alive in the fourth quarter.
It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t a statement win.
But it also wasn’t a disaster. For a team in a brutal spot, that matters.
Harden turned in one of his better showings since joining the Cavs, finishing with 24 points and five rebounds. Mitchell scored 22, though he was just 1-of-9 from 3-point range. Merrill gave Cleveland a lift off the bench with 16 points, and Allen added 14.
The problem areas were familiar. Cleveland gave up too many offensive rebounds and let Atlanta hit 40 percent of its 3-pointers. The margin for error was thin, and the Hawks took advantage just enough to survive.
Onyeka Okongwu led Atlanta with 29 points and continued to look like a problem for Cleveland. Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 20, and if either of them had gone quiet during the middle stretches, the outcome could have swung the other way.
Coach Kenny Atkinson had already signaled in the preseason that he planned to rotate the bench in different ways, and he followed through Thursday. Meleek Thomas didn’t play, while Tyrese Proctor and Craig Porter Jr. got minutes. It was part of the plan, and part of building real depth through actual game reps.
So yes, the Cavs are 3-2, and yes, they lost. But this was not the kind of night that leaves a team buried. It was more of a schedule loss than anything else, the sort of game that asks a little too much from a group on tired legs.
Cleveland heads to Milwaukee on Saturday night, still looking for that road win. Eventually, it has to come. Thursday just asked for too much, and the Cavs still nearly answered anyway.
In Other News...
Ty Jerome Just Gave Cavaliers Fans A Needed Breather
Ty Jeromes first rough night in Memphis offered Cavaliers fans a small dose of comfort after months of wondering what Cleveland gave up when he walked. Since leaving for the Grizzlies, Jerome has been one of the names fans have circled whenever his new team looks like it may have gotten the better end of the deal, so a quieter performance against Portland was bound to draw some attention back in Northeast Ohio.
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Cavaliers Keep Collapsing And Kenny Atkinson Has A Growing Problem
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What stands out most is how familiar the issues have become. Atkinson pointed to the same basic breakdowns that have haunted the Cavaliers in multiple games, especially around the defensive glass and the kind of lapses that turn a comfortable position into a scramble. With tougher matchups ahead, Cleveland is running out of time to turn those warning signs into clean, complete wins. [Read more 🡒]
Cavs Collapse Should Put Kenny Atkinson Under Fresh Scrutiny
The Cavaliers had built a 15-point cushion after the first quarter, only to watch Atlanta chip away and eventually take control in a game that exposed some familiar late-game frustrations. Cleveland still got scoring from James Harden, who led the way with 24 points, and Donovan Mitchell added 22, but the offensive production was not enough to cover for the way the game unraveled after the opening period.
What stood out most was the second-half defensive drop-off, along with the coaching choices that came under the microscope as the Hawks kept pressing. The loss leaves Kenny Atkinson facing a fresh round of scrutiny, especially with the Cavaliers unable to protect a strong start or steady things when the game tightened late. [Read more 🡒]