Cavs Called Out by Fans in Blowout Loss to Pacers, Donovan Mitchell Exits With Injury
Sunday's blowout loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals added insult to injury for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Not only did the Cavs put forth an embarrassing effort on their way to a 129-109 loss that put them in a 3-1 series deficit, but they also lost star guard Donovan Mitchell to an ankle injury.
Mitchell experienced discomfort in his ankle coming out of halftime and sat out the entire second half. He missed the final four games of the regular season with a left ankle injury, but it wasn't believed to be a serious issue at the time.
It probably wouldn't have made a difference if Mitchell was healthy enough to take the court over the final two periods. The Pacers took an 80-39 lead into halftime and led by as many as 44 points to put the game out of reach, barring a miracle that never came for the Cavs.
Cleveland was ran out of the building from the very start, being held to just 8-of-32 shooting over the first two quarters. Swingman De'Andre Hunter's shove on Indiana guard Bennedict Mathurin in retaliation for a punch to the chest was the lone moment of fight from the Cavs in a game they needed to win. Instead, they're now on the brink of elimination.
Fans on social media were more than willing to call out the Cavs for their abysmal showing in Sunday's Game 4 loss:
What made Sunday's performance by Cleveland even more surprising was that the team was coming off a dominant 22-point win in Friday's Game 3. The Cavs appeared to return to the form that earned them the No. 1 seed in the East in that game, but that effort was nowhere to be found in Game 4.
As the series heads back to Cleveland for Game 5 on Tuesday, the basketball world is wondering about Mitchell's status. If he's forced to sit out, the Cavs could be on the verge of another disappointing playoff collapse.
