The Cleveland Cavaliers very own Donovan Mitchell impresses in All-Star shootout

Donovan Michell was among the biggest standouts in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game.

Jayson Tatum played 35 minutes on Sunday night and scored 55 points in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game, a record for any year of the game. Tatum’s performance was great and it seemingly caused a ripple effect. That ripple effect caused people to ignore or miss the fact that Donovan Mitchell dropped 40 points in the same game.

That 40-point outing puts him 9th All-Time in most points in an All-Star Game. Six of those nine have come in the last eight years, really showing how pathetic the effort has become in these All-Star Games defensively, so it’s not a huge deal anymore, like when Michael Jordan dropped 40 in 1988 or Wilt Chamberlains’ 42 in 1962. But still, it’s a big enough deal that we can talk about it.

Mitchell’s 40 was huge, and it should get some more hype for the Cleveland Cavaliers heading into the last quarter of the season, and with just 21 games left, the Cavs need to start generating some real big wins. And the best way to do so is by feeding Mitchell once the regular season begins anew.

The Cleveland Cavaliers need Donovan Mitchell to be more like his first-half self

The Cavs need Mitchell to be far more like his first-half self than his second-half self. He was a dynamo without Darius Garland and even with him early on, getting Cavaliers faithful to chant MVP every home game.

He was in the early talks for not only the MVP but the scoring crown as well. However, ever since his 71-point game, his shooting has fallen off. He’s had six sub-20 point games in 33 outings prior to that 71-point offering, but since then he’s had 6 in just 16 games. His shooting splits have fallen off since that 71-point game as well, dropping from 39% from three in December to just 33% from three during January.

He’s starting to return to form but healthy and consistency are going to be necessary for the Cavs to climb up the ranks and win some playoff games.