Cleveland Cavaliers star guard Donovan Mitchell said that he spent four days in bed with an illness that kept him out of multiple games.
“Kind of was in the bed for four days, didn’t move, had to go home, didn’t move,” Mitchell said. “And then tried to get back, so I mean I felt better than expected. And you realize how much you missed the game when you’re just sitting at home doin’ absolutely nothing, so that was great to be back.”
Mitchell took the court for the Cavaliers for the first time since Dec. 18 in the team’s matchup against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday. In 36 minutes of playing time, he dropped 34 points, six rebounds, nine assists, two steals and one block while shooting 14-of-23 from the field.
Big man Jarrett Allen scored the second-most points of any player on the Cavaliers. He finished with 30 points in 40 minutes of action and also chipped in 12 rebounds and six assists. Allen arguably has been playing his best basketball of the 2023-24 regular season over the past few games.
Before he put up big numbers against the Bucks, he ended up with 24 points, 23 rebounds, six assists and two steals in the team’s victory over Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks on Dec. 27.
Despite the Cavaliers getting a herculean performance from Mitchell in his return to the floor and another great game from Allen, the team lost to the Bucks by a final score of 119-111. Cleveland dug itself into a hole in the third quarter, as after a productive first half, the Cavaliers were outscored 40-21.
The loss dropped Cleveland’s record to 18-14 on the season, which is the sixth-best record in the Eastern Conference right now. The Cavaliers are now a game and a half back of the Miami Heat for the No. 4 seed in the conference.
The team’s next chance to get back in the win column won’t come until the new year. Mitchell and the Cavaliers will take on the Toronto Raptors on the road on Jan. 1. The Raptors have won just three out of their last 10 games and are fresh off a loss to the Boston Celtics on Friday.
After taking on the Raptors, the Cavaliers will then host guard Jordan Poole and the Washington Wizards on Jan. 3.
