That was embarrassing on all fronts.
The Cleveland Cavaliers had likely their worst showing of the year with the season on the line. And they lost Donovan Mitchell to a non-contact ankle injury in a game that wasn’t as close as the 129-109 score indicates.
The Indiana Pacers now lead the series 3-1.
Grades are based on our usual expectations for each player.
Donovan Mitchell
12 points (3-11 shooting), 1 rebound, 1 steal
So, as if things weren’t bad already, Mitchell proceeded to injure his left ankle warming up for the second half. So that is great.
Mitchell struggled before the injury. He wasn’t able to get to the basket and the three-ball still wasn’t falling.
Grade: F(lop)
Darius Garland
21 points (6-11 shooting), 6 assists, 1 rebound
Bit aside, it was nice to see Garland appear to find his footing in the game as it went along. Yes, the points were scored when the game had essentially no stakes, however, it shows progress to the potential elimination do-or-die Game 5.
Grade: F(utile)
Jarrett Allen
2 points (0-1 shooting), 1 rebound,
That might be up there for the worst Allen game in the postseason. It was a game in which the Pacers were gobbling up all second-chance opportunities and were driving to the rim with little to no pressure. That all starts and ends with Allen.
Grade: F(aulter)
Evan Mobley
10 points (3-7 shooting), 5 rebounds
It looked early on that the Cavaliers were going to get Mobley more involved. They used him to bring the ball up, ideally to alleviate the workload on Darius. They stopped doing that pretty quickly and went back to Garland. Mobley did hit an early three, and I felt something for a rare fleeting moment in Game 4. That was nice, thank you for that brief moment of joy Evan.
Grade: F(lawed)
Ty Jerome
7 points (2-3 shooting), 2 rebounds
Honestly, this was the best game of the series for Jerome. Change my mind. The shot went in more than it had in Game 3. And this was still a bad game.
Grade: F(eeble)
Sam Merrill
3 points (1-5 shooting), 2 assists, 1 rebound
Good cardio session for Merrill. Great work by Kenny Atkinson for realizing that Sam needed to get some laps in for Game 5 conditioning.
Grade: F(urious)
Max Strus
11 points (4-9 shooting), 6 rebounds, 3 assists
I actually thought Strus played the most consistent game out of everyone tonight when the game was still “in reach”. I think Strus has put together the best stretch of basketball in his Cavalier career. Every time he pulls up I feel the most confident of anyone on the team that the shot is going in.
Grade: F(izzle)
De’Andre Hunter
5 points (0-4 shooting), 4 rebounds, 1 assist
Honestly, cannot believe that Hunter wasn’t ejected. Yes, Bennedict Mathurin totally deserved the shove for the punch to the chest, however, that shove was so blatant and outside the play. Hunter delivered the best moment of the night and none of it came from actual basketball. Just two guys having their own little game of “I’m the real tough guy,” which, newsflash to both of them, they are far from.
Grade: F(lagarent Foul Bait)
Dean Wade
3 points (0-2 shooting), 3 rebounds
Thanks for showing up Dean.
Grade: F(ractured)
Cleveland Cavaliers
Scored 39 points at the half, let Indiana do horrendous acts against them, and had the playback chat beg me to never stream again.
I hate it here
Grade: F(eeling all kinds of depressed)