Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers Praised by NBA Twitter for Hot Shooting vs. 76ers
The hoop must have looked like a swimming pool for the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night.
It felt like the Cavs couldn't miss during a 113-85 shellacking of the Philadelphia 76ers, and in the second quarter, they almost didn't, missing just one shot from the floor in the entire frame.
In total, the Cavs shot 60.8 percent from the field (45-of-74) and 51.7 percent from three (15-of-29) in an easy win over the beat-up 76ers. Caris LeVert led the way with 22 points, Darius Garland chipped in 21 points and nine assists and Donovan Mitchell added 18 points and six dimes.
Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 19 points (6-of-16 from the field) and six rebounds.
Suffice to say, NBA Twitter was impressed with what they saw from the Cavs on Wednesday:
The Sixers will likely lament not playing stiffer defense, but it's a make-or-miss league, and the Cavs (14-8) were in a making sort of mood.
The Sixers (12-10) were also without their starting backcourt of James Harden and Tyrese Maxey yet again, making their odds of keeping up in a shootout unlikely.
While Philly has played well without that pair of late, going 4-2 since Maxey suffered a small fracture in his left foot, a talented Cavs team at home was too much to overcome.
The win kept the Cavaliers in third place in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Boston Celtics (18-4) by four games and the Milwaukee Bucks (14-5) by 1.5 games. The Sixers, meanwhile, are in sixth place in the East.
The question coming into the season was whether the addition of Mitchell would be enough to push a talented and young Cavaliers roster over the top and into championship contention. On nights like Wednesday, this group's upside was on full display, and the Sixers were left to feel that wrath.
