AP
Cavaliers
The Cavaliers were met with boos at home Saturday night during a loss to a shorthanded Warriors team, their fifth defeat in seven games. Donovan Mitchell didn’t mince words afterward.
“Can’t keep getting in this position,” Mitchell said, via Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. “Shouldn’t come down to it. All due respect and credit to them, but the consistent thing is we get down and then we start playing. There’s no switch to flip.”
Mitchell added that until the Cavaliers change that pattern, they will keep finding themselves in the same situations “where sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t.”
Head coach Kenny Atkinson echoed the frustration. “We need a reset right now to rest our bodies and get our principles,” Atkinson said. “You always take lessons from struggles.”
Bucks
Giannis Antetokounmpo remains the center of league-wide speculation, but he told NBA on Prime’s Chris Haynes that his intention is to stay in Milwaukee and push through adversity.
“There are people who see a door, who want to hurry up and escape through that door,” Antetokounmpo said. “I see a wall and I want to run through the wall and make things work.”
Haynes added that Antetokounmpo’s focus is strictly on getting healthy and helping his team. Kurt Helin of NBC Sports wrote that while the trade buzz won’t disappear, any real movement involving the two-time MVP would likely wait until the offseason.
Pistons
Isaiah Stewart’s defensive impact has been impossible for the Pistons to ignore, and the team is making sure the rest of the league hears it.
“He’s the best defensive center in the league and it’s not close,” coach JB Bickerstaff said, via Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press.
Cade Cunningham went a step further.
“I think he’s the best defensive player in the league,” Cunningham said. “I would love to see him get a Defensive Player of the Year award… I’m thankful I don’t have to see Stew.”
Stewart is averaging 2.0 blocks in 22.5 minutes per game and has five outings with at least four blocks.
Ausar Thompson added that Stewart contests “every shot” and “puts his body on the line every night.”
One obstacle remains: award eligibility. Stewart already has six games under 20 minutes, leaving him only 11 more before he would fall short of the 65-game, 20-minute threshold required for postseason honors.
Looking for the latest NBA Insider News & Rumors?
Be sure to follow Hoops Wire on TWITTER and FACEBOOK for breaking NBA News and Rumors for all 30 teams!