Donovan Mitchell injury update: Status of Cleveland Cavaliers star emerges

Cleveland Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell is doubtful to return to Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Indiana Pacers on Sunday evening, according to Bleacher Report. He suffered an ankle injury and did not come out of the locker room with the team to start the second half.

The Cavaliers already found themselves trailing by a massive margin as the Pacers led 80-39 at halftime. Mitchell will likely end his night with 12 points on 3-of-11 shooting as Cleveland appears to be headed toward falling behind 3-1 in the series.

Prior to this evening, Mitchell had scored at least 30 points in every game this series. He was coming off of a 43-point performance in Game 3, which the Cavs claimed with a dominant 126-104 road win.

Cleveland has been hampered with injuries throughout this series. Point guard Darius Garland missed the first two games due to toe injury while Evan Mobley and De’Andre Hunter both sat out of Game 2. That led to the Cavaliers dropped both contests to find themselves in an early 2-0 hole.

Cleveland is the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference but will now need to win three straight games to make it back to the conference finals for the first time since 2018. Although not impossible, only 13 teams have ever come back from a 3-1 series deficit in NBA history.

Of course, the health of Mitchell will be paramount in determining whether the Cavs have a chance. They will hope he can be good enough to go for Game 5, which will take place Tuesday night in Cleveland.

Charles Barkley sends strong warning to Stephen A. Smith of media overexposure

As two of the most prominent NBA voices over the past decade-plus, Charles Barkley and Stephen A. Smith have been friends for years. Which is why the outspoken NBA on TNT analyst has no qualms telling the ESPN firebrand to knock off his recent presidential-like media tour, which included a brief appearance as a slain sports agent in last week’s Law & Order episode.

“You know, Stephen A.’s a friend of mine but he needs to stop right now,” Barkley told OutKick’s Dan Dakich last week on his Don’t @ Me podcast. “I don’t go on a bunch of shows. Less is more. Because the more you do, the less people take you serious. And I don’t feel the need to grab every dime at my disposal. Like, I’ve been arguing with my agent. He says, ‘We can do five to seven commercials a year.’ I said, ‘We’re going to do two commercials a year — that’s it.’ I don’t want to be on TV all the time. I get sick of seeing myself doing March Madness. … I don’t do a bunch of TV stuff, because people get sick of you. That’s my No. 1 thing. People will get sick of you.”

Smith, who reportedly signed a $100 million extension with ESPN earlier this year, has become a regular in the political realm since floating the idea of running for president in 2028. That has included multiple hits on news networks FOX, CNN and even NewsNation. That’s in addition to his daily appearances on ESPN with First Take and NBA Today, as well as his recurring role as “Brick” on General Hospital.

“I mean, he’s already on General Hospital. Now, he’s going to be on Law and Order tonight. I was just laughing. I’m like, ‘Yo, man, you’re starting to be too much right now,’” Barkley continued. “Like, you’re going to be on CNN, you’re going to be on Fox and Friends, you’re on General Hospital, now you’re on Law and Order. I’m like, ‘Yo, man, knock it off. Stop being on every TV show.’

On3’s Alex Byington contributed to this report.