A has-been guard! How good is Mitchell this season?

In the regular season, the Cavaliers defeated the 76ers 132-121 at home.

In this game, Mitchell had his best personal performance so far this season: playing 35 minutes, he made 15 of 21 shots, 6 of 11 three-pointers, 10 of 10 free throws, and scored 46 points, 4 rebounds, and 8 assists with a super-high true shooting rate of 90.6%.

It’s no exaggeration to describe Mitchell as unstoppable in this game. He scored 15 points in a single quarter in the first quarter, leading the team 41-27 to lead the 76ers by 14 points; after being chased by points in the second quarter, it was Mitchell again in the third quarter who scored 15 points in a single quarter, further widening the point difference to 20 points; in the fourth quarter, Mitchell scored 10 points and 2 assists, directly helping the Cavaliers defeat their opponents.

The perception of the game may be even more explosive than the statistics. From the first quarter, Mitchell basically missed a shot. Not only was he accurate in three-pointers, but he was also sharp in his breakthrough and finishing. He made 6 of 6 shots from the basket in this game, directly destroying the 76ers' inside and outside perimeter.

Looking at some data after the game, in just over three years, Mitchell has left a lot of hard-core footprints in the history of the Cavaliers:

- The 20th time in the Cavaliers' career with 40+ points, second in team history, the first is James 51 times (Irving played 11 times in 6 years)

- The fifth time in the Cavaliers' career with 45+ points, tying Irving, second in team history, first is James Si 18 times

- The second player in the history of the Cavaliers to score 40+ points with a 90% true shooting percentage. The last one was Irving

Everyone in the NBA this season knows that the start was very explosive. Compared with Benyama, Antetokounmpo, Maxi, Doncic and others, Mitchell's "splash" was not that big, and some fans even said that he has expired (Mitchell said it himself after the game).

But in fact, since the start of the season, Mitchell's performance cannot be ignored. He has played a total of 7 games, scoring 35+ points in 4 games, averaging 31.9 points, 2.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He is fourth in the league in scoring and the highest in his career.

And Mitchell's efficiency is very good, shooting 57.6% from the field, 45.5% from the three-point range (a total of 30 of 66 shots, averaging 4.3 three-pointers per game), and the true shooting percentage reaches 72.4% (the previous career best was 61.4%).

For comparison, last season's Mitchell averaged 24.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game, with three shooting percentages of 44.3%/36.8%/82.3% and a true shooting percentage of 57.5%. This season's data level has directly improved by two levels.

Last season was Mitchell's first-team season, but objectively speaking, the reason why he was selected to the first-team was more due to the Cavaliers' 64-win record. Compared with last season (15 consecutive wins at the beginning), the Cavaliers' performance this season is not as explosive (5 wins and 3 losses), but Mitchell's contribution can be said to be real, and the data can also prove it:

- When Mitchell was on the court, the Cavaliers scored 120.5 points per 100 possessions, net Win the opponent by 12.0 points

- Without Mitchell on the court, the Cavaliers scored 110.9 points per 100 possessions and lost 15.3 points to the opponent

. They only played 7 games. There are not enough samples, but such on/off value may only be achieved by Jokic in active duty.

Let’s put it this way, Maxey is the player with the highest score at the beginning of the Eastern Conference, and Cunningham is a ball-handler with a very high ceiling. However, I personally feel that in terms of scoring ability alone, Mitchell is the strongest defender in the Eastern Conference, and he is the kind of ball that is difficult to block in the regular season and playoffs. player, this has been proven too many times:

- 2020 playoffs, averaging 36.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game, 50+ points twice in a single round series, including 57 points in one game (the highest score in a single game in the active playoffs)

- 2021 playoffs, 50+ points per game Averaged 32.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists. In the series against the Clippers, he averaged 34.8 points

- In the 2024 playoffs, he averaged 29.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game. He scored 50 points in a single game

- In the 2025 playoffs, he averaged 29.6 points and 4. 7 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 48 points + 43 points in two consecutive games

The most criticized thing about Mitchell is that he cannot lead the team far. He has never touched the conference finals floor in his career. I will not talk about it during the Jazz period. I will only talk about the Cavaliers' injuries in recent years. In fact, many people have ignored him.

——In the 2024 playoffs, Mitchell averaged 30+ in the first three games of the second round. Unfortunately, he was injured and missed the last two games. The Cavaliers were also swept by the Celtics (but based on the performance of the Celtics that year, there was a high probability that Mitchell would not be able to beat him even if he played)

——202 In the 5-year playoffs, Hunter, Garland, and Mobley were all injured, and the 64-win Cavaliers were also eliminated in the second round by the Pacers

Personally, I have two expectations for Mitchell this season:

1. Can he be selected for the All-NBA First Team again? In terms of record, it will be difficult for the Cavaliers to surpass last season, but in terms of statistics, if Mitchell can maintain the current level, it is not impossible to be selected to the first team again. Don't underestimate this achievement. It is not easy to be selected to the first team twice in his career. You know, Curry has only been selected to the first team four times in his career so far.

2. Can you touch the floor of the Eastern Conference Finals? This does not only depend on Mitchell. In fact, he has tried his best in the playoffs in the past two years, but his young teammates Mobley and Garland still need more growth, especially Mobley. He was the DPOY last season and was even considered to be competing for MVP before the start of this season. However, judging from the start of the game, the boss of this Cavaliers must still be Mitchell..

Mitchell is already 29 years old. These past few years may be the best years of his career. We will not be surprised if he scores 40+, 45+, or 50+ in the future. But if a player wants to be "out of breath", he cannot just rely on a single highlight. The playoff results are the most hard-core. Mitchell's strength is still so outstanding. I hope to see a different Cavaliers this year.