With 71 points, Donovan Mitchell towered over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA duel against the Chicago Bulls – and catapulted himself into the history books. Mitchell’s coach raved about one of the best performances in the history of the world’s top basketball league.
Even LeBron James was stunned. “You’re crazy,” wrote the NBA superstar on Twitter, summarizing in three words what Donovan Mitchell had conjured up on the floor shortly before. With 71 points, he led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a crazy comeback triumph against the Chicago Bulls – since Monday evening the name Mitchell has also been in the glorious leaderboard of the strongest basketball league in the world.
“We saw one of the best performances in NBA history,” enthused head coach J.B. Bickerstaff after his team’s 145:134 success. Mitchell, who had switched from the Utah Jazz to Ohio in a blockbuster trade before the season, had just revived the weakened Cavs after being 21 points behind – and broke several records in the process.
He stole the franchise record (57) from “King” James, becoming the only seventh NBA player ever to surpass the 70-point mark. It was also the best haul in 17 years, when Lakers icon Kobe Bryant gave the Toronto Raptors 81 points. Bryant, who tragically passed away three years ago, is still second in the leaderboard behind Wilt Chamberlain (100). And now Mitchell.
“To stand next to a player like Wilt in the record books makes me humble,” said the 26-year-old, nicknamed “Spida”, modestly but confidently at the same time: “I always believed that I was one of the best players in the league could be.”
The Allstar has already proven several times that he is a great scorer. Unforgotten is his play-off appearance in July 2020, when he played two 50-point games in a Utah jersey against the Denver Nuggets – and was eliminated in round one after a 3-1 series lead. With the Cavs, Mitchell seems to have taken his game to a new level. At least that’s what LeBron buddy Dwyane Wade thinks, who quickly gave “Spida” a new nickname on Twitter: “71!???? You’re BAD MAN!!!”