By james art In Game 2, Darius Garland (23 points, five assists) and Donovan Mitchell (30 points, five assists) led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a dominant 135-116 victory over the Washington Wizards in the nation’s capital. The Cavs are now 3-0 for the first time since 2020-21, making the most of a soft start.
After a relatively slow start in his first two games, Mitchell broke out and led the Cavs in scoring. Garland shot a very efficient 9-11 to help the effort, and Jarrett Allen even beat him with a perfect 10-10 from the floor. For Allen, it helps tremendously when you have guards who can distribute the ball like this:
Evan Mobley, who had an impressive start to the season in a transformed role, had a lackluster offensive game but collected 13 rebounds and registered two blocks. Dean Wade, the star against the Detroit Pistons in the home opener at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, failed to register a three-pointer. Fortunately, it didn’t matter.
The big story, though, is Mitchell coming out of his shell with a 30-point explosion. After scoring just seven points in the first half, Mitchell brought out the full arsenal, getting to the rack and draining threes off the dribble. It was a welcome sight, even though the Cavs survived the first two games without Mitchell playing at his best. With Monday’s schedule tightening against the New York Knicks, bringing Mitchell into the flow is good to see.
Cleveland heads to New York to play the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, a game that should be more competitive than tonight’s against Washington.