Dribbles: Cavs Can Only Burn Game 4 Tape, Focus On What Must Be Winning Streak Of All Streaks

May 11, 2025

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 129-109 hammer job of a road loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 4 on Sunday …

1. What can you say about a disappointment like this? It’s probably best just to keep it a secret.

2. The Cavs were not engaged mentally all night, and it cost them in every facet. Name an area of basketball and the Cavs performed poorly — shooting, defending, ball movement, hustle plays. On and on it went.

3. They did dribble OK, I guess. But that was probably about it.

4. None of that matters now. What the Cavs have to do is re-establish their identity and figure out a way to win three in a row. On the bright side, if they can get there, a Game 7 takes place in Cleveland.

5. I’ll stand by this being a very shaky 3-1 series lead for Indiana. Seriously. If the Cavs can get Game 5 at home on Tuesday, suddenly, the pressure shifts back to the Pacers. And just imagine how Indiana would feel having to come to Cleveland for a deciding game.

6. Anyway, that’s the glass-half-full view. Bottom line is the Cavs can only start with Game 5. And they can look nothing like they did in Game 4. That’s for darn sure.

7. As you likely know by now, Donovan Mitchell exited at halftime with a left ankle injury. Coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters that Mitchell will undergo an MRI on Monday.

8. As for Tuesday’s Game 5, Atkinson made no predictions. “(Mitchell) obviously couldn’t go in the second half. We’ll see what the MRI says,” he said.

9. And Game 4? All Atkinson could do was confirm what everyone already knew. “They dominated with their force,” Atkinson said. “They raised their game to another level and we didn’t match.”

10. Cleveland never led and trailed by as many as 44. Yeah. Ouch. On the bright side, sources tell me that Game 5 will begin with the score tied at 0-all. It’ll be up to the Cavs to take it from there.

11. More Atkinson: “‘We got two of the next three at home (should the Cavs win Games 5 and 6). Gotta get the next one and see if we can come back to Indiana for a Game 6.”

12. I’d be a lot more worried if the Cavs didn’t go on winning streaks of 15, 12, and 16 games this season. They finished with a 64-18 record. They aren’t in your typical 3-1 hole. Go ahead and say it’s over. I, for one, am not willing to go there, regardless of Game 4.

13. Former Cavs center and current NBA TV analyst Brendan Haywood: “If Donovan Mitchell is healthy, I definitely think Cleveland is going back (to Indiana for a Game 6).”

14. Frankly, I think they’d have to amputate Mitchell’s foot for him to sit out Game 5. Even that may not be enough. But what could be problematic is if Mitchell is out there and the injury keeps him from being the real Donovan Mitchell.

15. Anyway, we can only focus on what we know — and that’s the fact these Cavs will have to be more resilient and together than they’ve been all season. Otherwise, it’s season over.

16. While stats in a game like this are totally meaningless, I’ll rattle off one anyway. Darius Garland finished with 21 points and six assists, and his play on that bum toe offered reason to believe he can be big if needed. And boy oh boy, is it ever needed.

17. Garland on the loss, after a long pause: “Just didn’t have it tonight. (Twenty-two) turnovers are uncharacteristic. … We’ve been through adversity plenty of times. We’ve seen and done it before. So, go out there with a chip on our shoulder and with a lot of desperation.”

18. As for the idea of skipping the film on this one, Garland said it won’t be necessary. Instead, he said it’s good to examine things and work on correcting them. “We have to watch it and see what we can do better,” he said.

19. As it stands, the Cavs have just one day between now and their next attempt to save an otherwise remarkable season. It starts Tuesday in Cleveland. They’ll have to be as good as ever and they say they know that.