Donovan Mitchell’s 71-point game the most since Kobe Bryant in 2006
CLEVELAND — Donovan Mitchell just kept scoring. And scoring. And scoring. In went another 3, then another, and another. By audio, it was the swish of the net, followed by the roar of the crowd, and it was a tune that played on repeat nearly the entire night.
Kevin Love has seen some incredible individual performances in his 15-year NBA career. He’s watched Kyrie Irving turn in a couple of 50-point games. He’s been a witness to many of LeBron James’ best career nights.
But he’s never seen anything like what Donovan Mitchell did Monday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. In fact, very few in NBA history ever have.
Seventy one points. Fifty five points after halftime. A wild play to send the game into overtime. And a final five minutes in which Mitchell simply couldn’t miss and out-scored the Chicago Bulls by himself, leading the Cavs to a 145-134 comeback win.
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In doing so, Mitchell became just the seventh player in NBA history to reach the 70-point plateau in a single game. No Cavs player had ever reached 60. And no active player has a higher single-game point total.
“In my 15 years, that’s the best performance I’ve ever seen,” Love said after the game. “And I’ve been a part of — I’ve seen some special ones. I was talking about Kyrie here against Portland when he had 55. LeBron in Game 1 of the 2018 Finals. Fifty-seven for Kyrie in San Antonio. But this one takes the cake. … I was saying, our group text from 2016, I was like, ‘What was Donovan’s asking price?’ That was something special tonight. He’s one of what, seven players that have scored over 70? That’s elite company, I can only imagine those names.”
Donovan Mitchell puts himself into NBA record books with 71-point game
Those names: Wilt Chamberlain (six times, including a 100-point game in 1962), Kobe Bryant (81 in 2006), David Thompson (73 in 1978), Elgin Baylor (71, 1960), David Robinson (71, 1994), Devin Booker (70, 2017). A 70-point game had only occurred three times in the last 45 years. And in that time, only Bryant’s legendary 81-point night topped Mitchell’s.