Mitchell can't believe Cavs' exit: 'Let city down'

CLEVELAND -- A few minutes after the final buzzer sounded and with the dust just beginning to settle on a 64-win season for the Cleveland Cavaliers that did not produce even a conference finals appearance, Donovan Mitchell returned to the sideline and took a seat on the bench.

He held his phone in his hands, but he wasn't looking at it. Instead, he sat with his lip pursued, his gaze unfixed and his expression unchanging.

"I just couldn't believe it," Mitchell said following the Cavs' season-ending 114-105 loss in Game 5 on Tuesday night. "Didn't want to believe it. Don't want to believe it. Still don't want to believe it."

The Cavaliers led the Eastern Conference all season, starting 15-0 and racking up three 10-game winning streaks en route to finishing with the second-best record in franchise history. Yet, they were upset by the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals in a 4-1 series loss.

Indiana, after winning all three series games in Cleveland, will face the Boston Celtics or New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals. The Cavs hadn't lost consecutive home games at any point this season and blew a 19-point first-half lead Tuesday.

"I love playing in that f---ing arena," Mitchell said. "That energy, that crowd. We were 0-3 at home, let the city down. This place is special. This place is really special and we didn't get it done."

The Cavaliers became the fourth team in NBA history to win at least 64 games in the regular season and not advance past the second round, per ESPN Research.

Mitchell had been the Cavs' best offensive player all series, averaging 34.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists, despite playing through a left ankle injury, which he aggravated at halftime in Game 4. Still, Mitchell gutted out a 35-point performance in Game 5 despite shooting 8-of-25 from the field (4-of-13 on 3-pointers).

In his career, Mitchell has averaged 28.3 points in the playoffs, the seventh highest in NBA history. He has played in the postseason in all eight seasons of his career, finishing on a team with the best record in the conference twice, but he still has never made it past the second round.

"We've had a lot of positives," Mitchell said of his team. "But we didn't capitalize. Now we've got to use this motivation. Everybody's going to write us off."

Injuries to several of the Cavs' key rotation players changed the complexion of the series.

Darius Garland sat out the first two games of the series (and four playoff games) because of a sprained left big toe and returned to average 14.0 points on 34% shooting (16.7% from 3) in three games. Evan Mobley, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, and De'Andre Hunter, the Cavs' prized trade-deadline acquisition, both sat out Game 2 after being injured in Game 1. Mobley averaged 18.0 points and 9.8 rebounds on 58% shooting, but he also scored only 11 total points across three fourth quarters in the series

"You just wish you were a whole, but I don't think that's an excuse," Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. "I don't want to say 'oh that's the reason, that's not the reason.' They were the better team."

Atkinson acknowledged some positive strides from the team this season, but he still noted how the Cavs struggled to match the Pacers' physicality and intensity throughout the series.

"I do feel like we got better," Atkinson said. "From the team aspect and then we had a lot of individuals make a step, so I just want to make that clear. But the truth of the matter is we didn't get to the level we wanted to get to. So, I'm not pleased with that. And we're not celebrating the season, if that all makes sense. But I do think we made strides. I think we took a jump.

"Now we got to figure out this last piece, how to get over this hump. And I was quite honestly expecting more, especially coming off the [first-round] Miami series."

Despite the disappointment of the loss, Mitchell agreed with the sentiment. He called Cleveland's season a step in the right direction, even while sorting through the frustration of not advancing further. He doubled down on the Cavs' core, saying "we'll be back."

"I'll go to bat for every guy in that locker room," Mitchell said. "Winning is not easy. Some things have to go right. You got to play well, got to capitalize on opportunities. ... We have a window with this group, I believe in everybody in here, we believe in each other. That's what sucks, we're a good team. And for five games ... we didn't show what we're capable of. And ultimately that's what we're judged on.

"So get in the gym, weight room, nutrition, whatever it is, and get back at it. Because y'all are going to write us the f--- off man. We'll be back. Let the city down, let each other down. But we'll be back."