Winners and Losers: Cavs vs Pistons Game 5 – Evan Mobley comes up clutch

LOSER – First Half Turnovers

Can I be honest? I’m kinda tired of typing this. It’s almost insulting to the wonderful readers of Fear the Sword that I keep reminding everyone why taking care of the ball is important. We’re all aware. Yet, it’s important enough to keep hammering home. The Cavs conceded 27 points off turnovers. 20 of those came in the first half. Coughing it up and allowing the Pistons to score in transition is the primary thing the Cavs should worry about in this series. They lost games 1-2 because of it, and they nearly repeated history tonight.

WINNER – James Harden

James Harden netted his first 30+ point playoff game as a Cavalier. It was his 50th career game of 30+ points in the postseason. Couldn’t have come at a better time. Harden, even when he’s turning it over and walking back on defense, has somehow managed to keep the Cavs alive throughout these playoffs. Other than games 1-2, where he actively cost them from winning, Harden has been a lifeline for Cleveland. Tonight was more of that. Harden took a sputtering Cavalier offense and towed them to the finish line. His isolation scoring ensured that Detroit could never pull too far away, immediately bringing the Cavs back into range after the Pistons went up by 16 points. There’s a sense of calm that Harden brings to the roster. Again, even when everything is burning down, Harden keeps the same demeanor. That can frustrate you when the team loses. It might seem like he doesn’t have any sense of urgency. But when the Cavs rally back? Harden’s composure is a bright spot. He didn’t allow them to panic, and that resilience won out in the end.

WINNER – Max Strus

In a just world, Max Strus will be remembered as a Cleveland legend. The only thing that’s left is a deep playoff run under his belt. Maybe he gets it this year. Strus does everything a blue-collar city should love. Grit, tenacity, and nonstop hustle. He’s a streaky shooter, but that motor never shuts off. That’s allowed him to be impactful in games where he doesn’t have his shot rolling. And when his shot is falling like tonight? It’s a cherry on top. The Cavs fell behind early in this game due to turnovers. It was Strus, alongside Harden, who connected on timely buckets to keep things under control. He continued to nail momentous shots in the second half — on top of hustling for loose balls and second-chance opportunities. Strus, who came up with a clutch steal in Game 3, did it again tonight when he stole the ball and passed to Mitchell for a layup in overtime. If that wasn’t enough, he also won over Charles Barkley tonight. It wasn’t perfect for Max. He had a difficult time keeping Cade Cunningham away from his spots defensively. That resulted in the best game Cade has had all series. But Strus eventually started to win that battle, wearing Cunningham down as the game went on. And, he fueled the Cavaliers with his 20 points, making up for anything he conceded to the opposing team’s All-NBA star.

LOSER [and partial WINNER] – Donovan Mitchell

The highs… and the lows. Mitchell scored a historic 39 points in the second half of Game 4. It feels like he maybe should have saved some of that for tonight. If Mitchell could have replicated even sixty seconds of that performance, the Cavs would have won comfortably. The Pistons’ defense had Mitchell totally in a box for most of this game. He began 3-11 from the floor and 0-7 from downtown. This game was begging for Mitchell to take over. But it wasn’t happening. At one point in the fourth quarter, Mitchell missed a wide-open three-point attempt from the corner that led to a transition three from Detroit. A devastating six-point swing with the game hanging in the balance. On the final possession, Mitchell had the world in his hands with a chance to win the game. He was absolutely smothered by Ausar Thompson and turned it over without getting a shot up. Rough. It wasn’t all bad, thankfully. Mitchell sparked just enough fire to help the Cavs get over the hump in overtime. He scored half of Cleveland’s 14 points in the extra frame, drilling his first three-pointer of the night and bursting to the hoop for a pair of buckets.