18 Misses, Just 2 Makes: Donovan Mitchell’s Worst Game of the Season—Is He Really MVP-Worthy?

Cavaliers Collapse Continues: From Historic Streak to Four-Game Skid

A week ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers looked unstoppable.

Riding a 16-game winning streak, they held a 56-10 record, sitting atop the NBA standings. The talk of a historic 70-win season was growing louder.

Fast forward seven days, and that dream is completely shattered.

Cleveland has now lost four straight games, dropping out of first place in the league and surrendering the top spot to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The latest defeat? A 123-112 loss to the Phoenix Suns, and this one wasn’t even close. Unlike their previous two losses, where they squandered leads late, the Cavs were playing from behind all night. At one point, they trailed by as many as 21 points—against a Suns team ranked among the league’s worst defensively.

How did the best offensive team in the NBA manage just 112 points against such a vulnerable defense?

Look no further than Donovan Mitchell.

Mitchell’s Nightmare Game: 18 Shots, 2 Makes

If you checked Mitchell’s shot chart, you’d think it was a glitch.

In 31 minutes, the Cavaliers’ franchise star shot:

• 2-of-18 from the field

• 0-of-8 from three

• Finished with just 7 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists

This wasn’t just a bad game. It was historically bad—one of the worst performances of his career.

How bad?

• Lowest-scoring game of the season (previous low: 14 points)

• Second-lowest scoring game in three years with the Cavs

• The only worse game? A 6-point performance in 2023, when he got ejected after an altercation with Dillon Brooks.

At least that night, he had an excuse.

This time, Mitchell simply couldn’t hit anything.

Cleveland as a team shot 45.9% from three (17-of-37). But Mitchell single-handedly dragged the percentage down—his 0-for-8 performance from deep dropped the Cavs' overall three-point shooting to 37.8%.

He was a complete outlier—in the worst way possible.

Mitchell’s Slump: A Deeper Problem?

One bad game can happen to anyone. But the real concern? Mitchell’s form over the last four games.

His numbers during the losing streak:

• Vs. Kings: 26 points, 8-of-17 FG, 1-of-6 3PT

• Vs. Clippers: 18 points, 5-of-18 FG, 2-of-9 3PT

• Vs. Magic: 23 points, 9-of-28 FG, 3-of-14 3PT

• Vs. Suns: 7 points, 2-of-18 FG, 0-of-8 3PT

That’s a four-game average of 18.5 PPG while shooting:

• 29.6% from the field

• 16.2% from three

For a player of Mitchell’s caliber, that’s unacceptable.

Zooming out to his entire season, we can see a clear decline:

Clearly, his efficiency and production have taken a hit.

Part of this is by design—Mitchell has shared more ball-handling duties with Darius Garland and Evan Mobley, allowing them to flourish.

But when your franchise star’s numbers are trending downward—especially this close to the playoffs—it raises serious concerns.

And speaking of concerns...

Still MVP-Worthy?

The NBA released its latest MVP rankings just before this game.

Shockingly, despite Cleveland’s three-game skid at the time, Mitchell still held on to the No. 5 spot in the MVP race.

Now? That ranking will spark even more debate.

Cleveland’s recent success made Mitchell a dark horse MVP candidate, but the last four games have exposed a major flaw:

The Cavaliers look like a title contender when Mitchell is playing at his best, but if he’s struggling, they have no backup plan.

And that’s a serious problem for a team that hopes to make a deep playoff run.

Cavs’ Biggest Fear: Peaking Too Early?

For months, the Cavaliers have been one of the NBA’s biggest surprises.

Nobody expected them to be this good. But now, their worst fear is coming true:

Did they peak too soon?

Some teams ride momentum into the playoffs. Others burn out at the worst possible time.

In 2015, the Atlanta Hawks went 60-22, earning the No. 1 seed in the East. But when the playoffs came, they collapsed, getting swept by the Cavaliers.

That team had zero elite shot creators—nobody to take over when things got tough.

This Cavs team is different—they have Mitchell.

He’s a proven playoff performer with three career 50+ point games in the postseason.

That’s what separates them from those 2015 Hawks.

But right now, Mitchell is playing more like the problem than the solution.

And with the playoffs approaching, Cleveland can’t afford any more slip-ups.

What’s Next for Mitchell and the Cavs?

Mitchell’s worst game of the season comes at the worst possible time.

But it’s not just about one bad performance.

Cleveland needs Mitchell at his best if they want to be more than just a regular-season story.

He doesn’t have to be perfect every night. But 2-for-18 can’t happen again.

For now, the Cavaliers' fate rests on one question:

Will Donovan Mitchell bounce back? Or has this slump exposed a bigger issue?