Donovan Mitchell Had a Historic Performance to Get the Game 4 Win vs. Detroit | HOOPS, 5/12/26
Plus: OKC finishes the sweep vs. a very game Lakers team, and more.
The Tip-Off: Question of the Day
On Monday the Thunder punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals once again, eliminating the Lakers in a four-game sweep that was at times competitive but showed the huge disparity in depth between the two franchises.
One player who’s struggles were well highlighted was center Deandre Ayton.
For no reason now, let me present these two things to you.
Recapping Monday’s Game 4 Matchups
Pistons - 103 at Cavaliers - 112 (Series tied 2-2)
I am of the belief that Donovan Mitchell is a bit underrated as a top-tier name in the NBA. It feels like every post-season he somehow levels up and drags his teams to wins and facing a four-point halftime deficit, that’s exactly what Mitchell (43pts/5r) did once again. He tied an NBA playoff record with 39 second-half points to help the Cavs even their series against the Pistons at two games apiece.
For awhile, it looked like the Pistons were going to come away with the win, especially as Caris LeVert (24pts/4r/3a) came off the bench with a huge supporting performance, providing the type of scoring Detroit has needed all series. Honestly, LeVert specifically being the one to step up felt like a very “wow, there’s no way they can lose now that HE’S getting buckets for them.”
But somehow, Cleveland stayed with it. James Harden (24pts/11a) may have struggled with his shot (5-14 FG) but one thing he did to great effect Monday was attack the basket. He and Mitchell combined to shoot 22-24 from the free throw line, double Detroit’s free throw totals (9-12).
Cleveland is now 6-0 at home this post-season but the real question will be, without home court advantage in the series can they steal a win in Detroit? I can’t wait to see if they can sustain the performance they had in the second half of this game or if the late sloppy play from the reserves is a bad sign of things to come for the team.1
Thunder - 115 at Lakers - 110 (Thunder win series 4-0)
The Thunder are now the 11th team in NBA history to start a post-season 8-0 after finishing a round-two sweep of the Lakers in dramatic fashion. It looked like LA was going to be able to extend the series one more night but it wasn’t to be as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (35pts/8a) and Chet Holmgren (16pts/9r) each hit timely buckets to help the Thunder close out the series.
OKC, who still doesn’t have Jalen Williams, will now wait to see who wins between the Spurs and Wolves, and with that series tied at 2-2 you know they’re hoping for another long series so they can rest as much as possible.
I want to specifically highlight Ajay Mitchell (28pts/4a/3r) who has been starting in place of Williams and who has looked at times like OKC’s best, most consistent player in the series.
Here is a quick comparison between Mitchell and some of LA’s role players.
Ajay Mitchell — $3,000,0002
Jarred Vanderbilt — $11,571,429
Maxi Kleber — $11,000,000
Deandre Ayton — $8,104,000
Jake LaRavia — $6,000,000
It’s that type of eye for talent that has catapulted the Thunder to the status and position they’re in and it’s hard to be mad, they’re just doing it all better than the rest right now. I hope Mitchell can keep up this level of play into the Western Conference Finals because it’s been incredible to watch how strong he’s come on as of late.
What Next for the Los Angeles Lakers?
This was a really interesting season for the Lakers for a lot of reasons but one specific one stands out to me above the rest: I kinda feel like the vibes were pretty good all year. No rumors of players being aggressively shopped at the trade deadline, no viral LeBron stares or subtweets, just a team that seemed to genuinely like each other and want to play hard together.
When Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves went down near the end of the regular season, this team could’ve easily faltered and slid down the standings and everyone would’ve understood. But instead, guys like Marcus Smart and Luke Kennard put on incredible supporting performances while we watched LeBron James cap off year 23 with night after night of continued greatness.
So now, with the season suddenly done, a lot of players and coach JJ Redick, all spoke on understanding what a special thing they had captured through the end of the season.
For the first time in a long time, LeBron enters the off-season as an expiring contract which means, we don’t know what’s going to happen next. Will he stay in LA? Will he opt to play elsewhere? Will he retire without the fanfare and pomp that so many predict he would want for a farewell tour? We truly don’t know and until that specific domino gets a bit clearer, the Lakers’ moves are going to be put on hold.
Austin Reaves has spoken at length about loving LA all year long but he’s due for a new contract and after emerging as a true second option and solid running mate for Luka Doncic, he’s earned a pay raise. The question is just: if you pay Reaves $50+ million a year and Luka is already on a supermax extension as well, can you win with your high-priced backcourt being mostly pedestrian when it comes to defense?
So once they decide how they want to handle Reaves, attention has to turn to the center spot where names like Isaiah Hartenstein, Nikola Vucevic, Jalen Duren, Robert Williams III, and more will hit free agency this summer. LA would be smart to pair Luka Doncic with a true rim-running center who can capitalize on all of the pick and rolls, even more so if the team retains Austin Reaves, so nailing this specific position is going to be essential for Rob Pelinka, who will undoubtedly be consulting with Doncic on the type of player he would prefer.3
It doesn’t sound like much until you realize the seismic shifts this team could undergo. We could be looking at a Lakers team without LeBron, without Austin Reaves, and with a new big budget center like Jalen Duren. It’s a lot of big, era-shifting change all at once so I fully expect months of drama and rumors to begin unfolding as early as Tuesday morning.
At the Buzzer
- James Harden remains one of the funniest people in the league
- Dillon Brooks sat front row to watch the Thunder sweep LA
- Wemby avoids suspension for elbow, will play in Game 5 Tuesday, De’Aaron Fox is questionable with an ankle injury
- Shams: Bucks are seeking trade offers for Giannis Antetokounmpo
Tonight’s Schedule
Game 5 - Timberwolves at Spurs (Series tied 2-2)
Thank you so much for reading, I hope everyone reading this is doing well and having a good day so far and a good start to the week. Hopefully I’ll see you back here tomorrow. Take care.
You never love seeing a coach angrily call timeout and put ALL his starters back in in garbage time.
Mitchell is currently the 15th highest paid player on the Thunder roster. I don’t know how they keep doing it. They can’t keep getting away with it.
Luka gets tons of credit in my book for reportedly asking Pelinka to sign Marcus Smart and for telling Smart specifically he wanted to play with him this season. Smart made so many huge plays down the stretch of the regular season and the playoffs, I hope he’s a Laker the rest of his career.