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In Darius Garland's season debut, the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled off a resounding victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, 132-121.
Donovan Mitchell had himself a night, scoring 46 points on 71.4% shooting from the floor to go along with eight assists and four rebounds. It was another fabulous performance in the books to start Mitchell's incredible season.
After the game, though, the All-NBA guard took the time to defend one of his Cavaliers teammates, who has been catching some flak from both the media and fans as of late.
Donovan Mitchell defends Jarrett Allen in post-game press conference
"This dude gives us his all every night, played all 82, we had to force his [expletive] not to play these last two games...he’s phenomenal and doesn’t get enough credit. I hate that he gets crap. He’s a joy to play with. A joy to be around. And one helluva person," Mitchell said from the podium.
Mitchell's defense of center Jarrett Allen was timely, given his early-season struggles.
So far this season, the 10-year NBA veteran is averaging 15.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, although there were some questions about his effort on the boards.
Allen stepped up big time on Wednesday night, though, racking up 24 points and 10 rebounds against the Sixers.
The Cavs are a team with championship aspirations this season, and if they want to live up to those expectations, they're going to need the big man locked in and ready to go both physically and mentally.
More Cavaliers news:
- Donovan Mitchell reveals interesting motivation after 46-point performance for Cavaliers
- Cavs' Donovan Mitchell ties an NBA record only ever done by Michael Jordan in basketball history
- Is Darius Garland making season debut with Cavaliers tonight vs. 76ers?
- Cavaliers get update on Darius Garland's injury timeline
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