Dribbles: Cavs’ Season Ends, And As Always, The Hard Questions About To Begin

CLEVELAND — Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ season-ending 114-105 home loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 5 on Tuesday. …

1. It’s hard to be mad about this Cavs season. A 15-game winning streak to start the year. Eight months of utter fun. Multiple franchise records along the way. But again, disappointment when it meant the most.

2. Now, the negativity and rumors will begin. The Cavs need something more, everyone will say. This roster just isn’t good enough.

3. And maybe president of basketball operations Koby Altman and coach Kenny Atkinson will agree. Maybe there will be changes. Maybe not, too.

4. Either way, the chatter is on the way. This is the NBA, and that’s just how it goes.

5. Donovan Mitchell covered all of this beautifully in his final postgame press conference of 2024-25. “Ya’ll gonna write us the (expletive) off, man,” he said. “We’ll be back.”

6. So Mitchell knows what is coming. He’s heard and read it all before. We all have. But he didn’t just talk tough. He didn’t make any promises. He even conceded the Cavs failed to reach their goals. Or really, come close to what they expected.

7. His voice was tempered, filled with disappointment. “This place is special. This place is really special,” he said. “We let the city down. … I told you during the year we will be judged off (the playoffs). There’s gonna be a lot of talk now. That’s what comes with it. So what are we gonna do about it?”

8. That will be the question, not just between now and next season, but frankly, all of next regular season as well.

9. Mitchell sat on the bench long after the game was over, still in uniform, sort of staring into space. Clearly, he was reflecting after leaving everything he had on the floor. Eventually, family and friends came down to join him.

10. After every game, I immediately receive a flurry of texts, phone calls, and DMs. I usually don’t respond (just ask my mom). That’s because when the game ends, I need to get to work. But I was especially bombarded after this one. And everyone wanted to know, “What do the Cavs do now?”

11. Sorry, but I have no idea. As Atkinson suggested, everybody needs a minute to breathe before rushing to conclusions or figuring out what’s next. I honestly thought the Cavs could come back, even when down 3-1. The fact that they didn’t is still too stunning. Now is no time to plot a shakeup.

12. What worked? What didn’t? Why didn’t it? How can it get better? Is a trade or two required? Those are all questions that are about to be asked, and they are indeed fair. 

13. But all we can say for sure is that the Cavs spent another May looking overmatched — this time by the Pacers, and this time after having tons of fun in the regular season, finishing a remarkable 64-18 along the way. It wasn’t enough.

14. Atkinson on the end: “We’ve got a lot of work to do. I think they presented a physical challenge. They have a particular style they play. I just give them so much credit for being able to sustain that type of intensity for so long. Now we’ve got to find a way to match it and we didn’t. They wore us down.”

15. More Mitchell: “We took a step in the right direction, but we didn’t win a championship and we didn’t complete the end goal. There are no moral victories here. We just didn’t get the job done. We’re a good team. And for five, four games, three games, we didn’t show what we’re capable of. Ultimately, that’s what we’re judged on.”

16. As for the game, I’m assuming you already know everything there is to know by now. If not, I’ve recapped it here and here.

17. As for analysis, I think Darius Garland was impacted by that sprained big toe. I think Mitchell’s bum ankle afftected his perimeter shot. But I also thought the Cavs were out-toughed, if that’s a word. Indiana plays with a lot of guts and tons of tenacity. As Atkinson said, the Cavs just didn’t match.

18. Evan Mobley in summary: “It was a good season, but we wanted to make that jump, that next step. … Gotta go back to the drawing board this offseason.”

19. Now, yes, a long offseason awaits. We should know Altman by now, and we should know he doesn’t make panic moves. But he saw the same things we did, and because of that, I highly doubt the Cavs stand pat. 

20. That said, the core of this group believes. Yes, still. As it should. This experience is painful, but it’s an experience nonetheless. You can build off of it without having to tear it down. 

21. These Cavaliers gave their fans and the organization countless reasons to be proud. I’ve covered the NBA for 20 years and have never been around so many quality people —  from the front office to the coaching staff to the men in uniform and beyond. Professionally, that means more to me than a championship. It’s just the way I’m wired.

22. That said, for the Cavs and their fans, it is championship or bust. Now, the organization will spend the next several months trying to figure out how to make that dream happen. Yes, again.