Cleveland Cavaliers: How the Cavs have emerged as a legit Finals contender

 Donovan Mitchell’s Impact

Since arriving in Cleveland by way of Utah, Donovan Mitchell has taken no time at all to acclimate to his new team. Mitchell is averaging 31 points, seven assists, and four rebounds through the first nine games of the season. He is shooting 48 percent from the field and a ridiculous 44 percent from three-point range. The latter stat happens to be a career-high.

These absurd numbers are sure to even out as the season goes along, but it’s a testament to how good of a player Mitchell is and how adding a superstar to your team can immediately change a team’s attitude. Mitchell can still occasionally be a liability on defense, but he provides something the Cavaliers lacked last year: somebody who can consistently take over a game when you need a bucket.

This was most prevalent in the Cavs win against Boston on November 2.

The Cavs trailed by one point with roughly 2:30 left. Instead of pressing, Mitchell went nuclear and scored nine straight clutch points to send the game to overtime. In the extra period, it was his defense that helped the Cavs secure the win with a crucial blocked shot on Jayson Tatum.

With Mitchell’s takeover ability, the Cavaliers will have a killer instinct that they lacked last year and will never be truly out of a game. The more minutes he plays with his new teammates, the more comfortable they will become with one another, and if the first nine games are any indication, Mitchell could be in for a career year.