A Spida Special: Donovan Mitchell drops career high
71 points
This season, it appears any given night you are likely to see a special scoring performance. Donovan Mitchell was no exception, putting on a scoring display that hasn't been since 2006. In a Monday night matchup with the Chicago Bulls, the Cavaliers were down by as many as 21 points in the first half. Mitchell was scoring at will but the Bull still appeared to be on their way to a hard fought win. The Cavaliers were down by 2 with three seconds when Mitchell ties game with a putback after an intentionally missed free throw. At the end of regulation, Mitchell had already broken the Cleveland scoring record of 58 points. In OT, Mitchell once again took the game over scoring 13 of the 15 Cavalier points in the extra session leading his team to a 145-134 win. Donovan Mitchell's 71 point performance was the highest scoring performance in the NBA since Kobe Bryant scored 81 points. He is now the 7th player to join the 70 point club alongside legends like Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, and Kobe Bryant.
After the game, Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff spoke on Mitchell's incredible performance stating "we were treated tonight to one of the greatest performances in the history of the game".
Mitchell did much more than just score as he had 11 assists and rebounds in his 50 minutes of play. He was very efficient shooting 22-34 from the field and shot 7-15 from three point range to lead the Cavaliers to victory without their All-Star guard Darius Garland.
The "Finnisher" scores career high 49 points
Lauri Markkanen continues to shine in what no doubt will be his first All-Star season as he had his best game of the season in a Thursday Night matchup against the Houston Rockets.
Lauri Markkanen scored a scored a career high 49 points on the road in Houston leading his team to a 131-114 victory. Before this game, his previous high in scoring was 38 which he had done twice this season, most recently against the Detroit Pistons. Markkanen got hot early in the game, scoring 18 points in the 1st quarter to give the Utah Jazz an early lead in the game. Houston came back to take the lead late in the third but Utah managed to end the quarter with the lead and were able close out Houston in the 4th quarter.
Markkanen finished the game 15-27 from the field and was 6-15 from the three point range. He also finished 13-13 from the free throw line.
When asked about his impressive performance Markkanen simply stated, "I’ve said it over and over again this year, it’s just my teammates, the coaching staff, they put me in the right spots to succeed".
The Resurgence of a Splash Brother: Thompson goes off for 54 points
Despite his amazing return after missing two years due to injury and winning his 4th NBA title many were beginning to doubt Klay as he had an inconsistent start to the season. However, over his last 7 games played, we have seen the resurgence of the great Klay Thompson. In his last 7 games, he has averaged 28 points per game while shooting 38.1% from 3 including 24 or more points in 5 straight games.
Thompson's best game of the season came in an instant classic against the Atlanta Hawks as he scored 54 points in a crazy double OT win. Thompson shot 21-39 from the field and hit a game-high 10 3 pointers with some coming in clutch situations. Thompson hit a go-ahead 3 with 18 seconds left in the first overtime after his tying 3 with 1:55 to go in the initial extra period.
His 54 point performance in the 143-141 win over the Hawks was the most he's scored since he scored 60 in three quarters in 2016.
Klay was reflective on his journey of once again being relied upon in big moments after having to watch from the sidelines during his rehab process. He said, “Those moments where you have the ball with the game on the line down the stretch and your teammates trust you, those are what you really live for as a competitor, as a basketball player. It was hard to see those at times during the rehab process.”
Game of the Week- Klay Thompson scores game-high 54 points, Kevon Looney scores game winning layup at the buzzer as Warriors take down the Hawks 143-141 in double overtime.
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