The Cleveland Cavaliers face the Indiana Pacers in the second round of the 2025 NBA playoffs. The Cavaliers are looking to advance to the conference finals for the first time since 2018.
Cleveland is favored to defeat Indiana since Kenny Atkinson’s group is the No. 1 seed in the East and one NBA analyst predicted that Donovan Mitchell will have one 40-point game in the best-of-seven series.
“Indiana’s defense won’t do quite enough to stop Cleveland, though. In particular, Donovan Mitchell is going to have at least one vintage night with 40-plus points,” Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report wrote. “He already has five such performances in the playoffs, which ties him for 26th place in NBA history. After averaging 23.8 points in only 31.0 minutes per game against Miami in the first round, he’s due for a big outing.
“Even with the Pacers having Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith to throw at him, Mitchell will go nuclear at some point in this series. After all, those two have to pay attention to Darius Garland and Ty Jerome as well. While one explosive-scoring night won’t necessarily decide the matchup, it’s not hard to imagine the Cavs winning this in six when combined with all of the little advantages they have over the Pacers.”
Mitchell averaged 27.0 points against the Pacers during the regular season. He shot 47.5% from the field and 37.5% from beyond the arc.
The Pacers did go 3-1 against the Cavaliers in the regular season. Indiana is a confident group with one of the top offenses in the NBA. Rick Carlisle‘s group beat the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round in five games.
The Cavaliers swept the Miami Heat in the first round. It was one of the easiest series in franchise history. Mitchell and Co. know that the Pacers pose a much different challenge than the Heat did.
“(Indiana’s) guys have been farther in the playoffs and whatnot,” Mitchell said. “It’s the same mentality we had against Miami. Take care of home court. Take care of business on the road. Rebound. Extra possessions. Get back in transition. You know, stick to what you do and do it better for 48 minutes.”
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Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic spent about a year together as Dallas Mavericks teammates, and that was more than enough time for Irving to collect some incredible practice stories about his former teammate. During a recent Twitch stream, Irving opened up about some of the things he saw Doncic do during Mavericks practices. He revealed that Doncic would put up absurd stat lines against his teammates, and once scored 24 points against someone in a three-minute span. “He’s giving you probably 60, 18, and 18,” Irving said. “I witnessed him give somebody 24 points in three minutes.” Based on Irving’s description, the big numbers feel like a fairly common occurrence. That might not quite be Caitlin Clark-levels of dominance, but it is pretty impressive all the same. There are some indications that Doncic is also starting to get his fitness in order. That might spell very bad news for opposing teams, and even opposing players in Los Angeles Lakers practices.
Caitlin Clark is expected to sit out for a fourth straight game on Sunday when the Indiana Fever take on the Chicago Sky in a much-awaited rivalry matchup. The 23-year-old is still dealing with a reaggravated groin strain and has no timetable to return. The rest of her Fever teammates have had to step up in her absence. There is, perhaps, no other player who has taken a bigger role on the offensive end amid Clark’s injury spell than three-time All-Star Kelsey Mitchell. Mitchell, however, struggled with her shot in Thursday’s win against the Las Vegas Aces. The 5-foot-8 guard shot the ball poorly in the first three quarters, going just 4-of-19 from the field for 12 points. Mitchell caught fire in the fourth, though. She went 4-of-5 in the final frame for nine points, finishing with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-24 shooting. This is exactly why head coach Stephanie White remains completely confident in Mitchell’s scoring ability. The veteran coach has made it clear that she has given Mitchell the green light to shoot the rock. “The biggest thing with Kelsey is just telling her, ‘Let it fly.’ It’s going to go,” White said after Thursday’s win against Las Vegas. "... Keep shooting it from outside. She made some big ones when we needed them.” Kelsey Mitchell Has Stepped up Amid Clark's Injury Mitchell has answered the call for the Fever of late. In the three games Clark has been sidelined, Mitchell has put up averages of 22.0 points on 42.9% shooting. She also knocked down 2.7 triples during that stretch on a 34.8% clip. The 29-year-old veteran will need to keep her foot on the gas on Sunday as the Fever try to take down the Sky at United Center. With Clark watching from the bench, the Fever will rely on Mitchell’s scoring against Chicago as they look to improve on their 13-12 record. The Fever and Sky meet at 3 p.m. ET Sunday on ABC.
After a 13-year career with the New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears, tight end Jimmy Graham is officially hanging up his cleats. Graham didn’t have a team for the second time in three seasons in 2024, and according to a beat writer for the team, he will retire as a Saint. Graham was drafted by the Saints out of Miami (FL.) in the 2010 NFL draft and by 2011 was a Pro Bowler and one of Drew Brees’ favorite targets. His best year came in 2013, when he caught 86 passes for 1,215 yards and an NFL-high 16 touchdowns en route to his only first-team All-Pro recognition. Which brings us to today’s quiz. Graham finished with 89 touchdowns in his NFL career, the 16th-most in the NFL’s Super Bowl era. With that being said, can you name every player to haul in at least 80 touchdown passes in their career? Good luck! Did you like this quiz? Are there any quizzes you’d like to see us make in the future? Let us know your thoughts at quizzes@yardbarker.com, and make sure to subscribe to our Quiz of the Day Newsletter for daily quizzes sent right to your email!
With the trade for Ryan McMahon now complete, it would seem New York Yankees’ general manager Brian Cashman has fulfilled one of his three priorities. He can now cross third base off the list, which leaves the rotation and bullpen as his remaining priorities. However, according to one Yankees writer, Cashman might not be done with the infield. Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reported this after the McMahon trade: “The Yankees may not be done adding to their infield. A team source said the Yankees are interested in adding a right-handed hitter who could play the infield.” Kirschner adds that the Yankees have had interest in Willi Castro and Amed Rosario. But the question now is, how would another player fit into the Yankees’ infield? Needless to say, Paul Goldschmidt and Jazz Chisholm Jr. aren’t going anywhere, and McMahon is just getting there. That leaves the low-hanging fruit. Anthony Volpe has been at the center of controversy all this season. His 13 errors, many of which had come at make-or-break moments, amount to the second-highest total in the game. In addition, his bat has not been able to compensate, hitting .217/.288/.408 with 14 home runs. There was always a lot to like about Volpe. He won a Gold Glove in his rookie year, his power has always been promising and his speed is nothing to scoff at. Unfortunately, his glove has become a liability, and his speed has also produced very few results. Volpe has swiped just 10 bags in 17 attempts. His power is the one thing that still has some upside, but it hasn’t been enough to justify a spot in the lineup. Both Castro and Rosario have been far more productive at the plate this season than Volpe. Kirschner doesn’t clarify how serious the Yankees are in their pursuit of another infielder, but that most likely isn’t available information. Having just turned 24, Volpe could still become the type of player that was expected from him as a top prospect. However, his recent performance has weighed heavily on his team’s efforts, and it may be buying him a ticket out of the Bronx — or at least a spot on the bench.
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