Dribbles: Cavs Lose By a Whisker, But At This Point, It’s All Eyes on Playoffs

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 120-118 road loss to the Hawks on Tuesday. …

1. Donovan Mitchell missed his final two shots, but not by much. The second was a halfcourt heave at the buzzer. It almost went. If it did, the Cavs would have snagged a victory in a game that probably shouldn’t have been this close.

2. The Cavs were down two starters — Jarrett Allen (groin) and Isaac Okoro (knee). For the record, neither injury is considered all that serious. Meanwhile, the Hawks had all their main weapons and are fighting for their playoff lives.

3. Yet the Cavs almost pulled it off, on the road, in a game they didn’t even really have to have.

4. Given that you can’t win them all, you can call this an exciting game and far from a bad defeat. It was actually one of the Cavs’ better performances during a stretch in which they’ve won nine of 13. A few bounces, a few questionable calls, and an especially determined Hawks team were really the only differences. And barely so.

5. Basically, as long as the Cavs continue to give this type of effort, they can feel good about where they stand heading into the playoffs. Mitchell is the superstar that can take them places. Darius Garland is a fantastic Option B. And man, Evan Mobley sure is coming around nicely. He may be better than ever when the Cavs need him to be at his best.

6. Sometimes, the Cavs can get bogged down with too much one-on-one. It’s true. But that’s sort of nitpicking. The only reason I bring it up is because, yes, there’s room to improve. That should be scary for the rest of the league in future seasons.

7. As for this year, I thought the Cavs had to win out if they were to steal the third seed in the Eastern Conference from the 76ers. But third, fourth … doesn’t really matter. This group is right where the front office figured it would be, probably better.

8. Basically, when it comes to these Cavs, there is no losing. Only degrees of winning and building on what they have done already.

9. Mitchell erupted for 44 points, though he did take 33 shots. That’s a lot — probably too many. Still, on this night, he was the Cavs’ best chance of winning. Garland scored 27 points on 22 shots. That’s 55 shots from the backcourt. Again, it’s not something to lose sleep over, but the ball could still stand to move a little more.

10. Meanwhile, Mobley went 10-of-13 from the field for 20 points. He also collected a whopping 15 rebounds, swatted four Hawks shots and altered countless others. Since about right before the All-Star break in mid-February, Mobley has shown why everyone thinks the sky’s the limit.

11. The Cavs (48-29) next face the Knicks, Friday at home, in what very well could be a preview of the first-round of the playoffs. Honestly, again, I don’t suspect the Cavs will finish anywhere but fourth in the East. The Knicks are very much on track to finish fifth, especially with the Heat sort of stumbling lately. That’s good. If I’m the Cavs, I want to avoid the more playoff-savvy Heat in the first round.

12. Hawks guard Trae Young (16 points) finished a miserable 4-of-15 shooting, thanks in large part to the Cavs’ defense. Dejounte Murray came up big, though, scoring 29. But great game all-around and nothing to fret about for the Cavs. That’s really the bottom line on this one.