CLEVELAND — Cleveland Cavaliers guards Donovan Mitchell and James Harden make up arguably the best backcourt of the upcoming NBA playoffs. Another argument could be made that no pair of NBA teammates has faced more postseason pain than Harden and Mitchell.

While Harden has never missed the playoffs in 17 seasons, no active player has played in more postseason games without winning a title than his 173, according to StatMuse. Mitchell has also made the NBA playoffs in each of his nine seasons but has never made it to the conference finals.

Ten years removed from the Cavaliers winning their lone NBA title, Mitchell and Harden are trying to get their first title with the franchise this season.

“If you’re looking at team success, then for sure, we’re definitely the names that come up, us two. Probably [Philadelphia 76ers center] Joel [Embiid, as well]. So, if you’re looking at team success, for sure,” Mitchell told Andscape prior to the Cavaliers’ regular-season finale against the Washington Wizards on Sunday. “There’s so much that goes into it, right? You got good games. You got bad games. You got good luck. You have bad luck. That’s ultimately when you join forces with a guy like [Harden].

“We’re different, right? He’s 17 years in. I’m nine. Does a ring change the conversation around his name? Yeah. Should it change it? No. I think [Harden] should still be looked at as one of the top guards, the top players who ever played this game. But we live in a ring culture. So, does a ring change the narrative? Sure. Change the narrative to me? For sure. And same thing with Joel Embiid, right? So, there’s a level of desperation to try to change what our narratives have been.

“For me, it’s not being able to get past the second round. For [Harden] it’s changing the playoff luck. I wouldn’t call it anything else because a lot has to go right to get to that point. You can have great individual success and still lose. You could do everything you humanly possibly can and still lose, right? I think it’s just a matter of the situation. It’s a testament to [Harden] to continue to be here 17 years in a row. That’s equally as impressive. So, I don’t think that defines him, who he is or his greatness. It’s something that will give the both of us, quite frankly, something that we’ve been longing for: winning a championship.”

During the 2025-26 NBA season, Mitchell is exclusively sharing insight into his life on and off the court with the Cavaliers in his monthly diary on Andscape. Draymond Green, Vince Carter, Trae Young, CJ McCollum, Fred VanVleet, De’Aaron Fox, Cade Cunningham, James Wiseman, Josh Jackson, Bradley Beal and, most recently, Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero have participated in previous Andscape diaries.

For his NBA career, Mitchell is averaging 25.1 points, 4.8 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game in 609 regular-season games for the Cavaliers and the Utah Jazz. The former University of Louisville star is also a two-time All-NBA selection and winner of the 2018 NBA dunk contest. The 29-year-old finished the 2025-26 season averaging 27.9 points, 5.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, and he made his seventh consecutive All-Star appearance. Mitchell and the Cavs made a title push by adding Harden at the trade deadline.

The Cavaliers finished the regular season with a 52-30 record and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Cleveland has a first-round playoff matchup against the fifth-seed Toronto Raptors, with Game 1 in Cleveland on Saturday. The Raptors swept the season series against the Cavs 3-0, but all three contests took place before the trade for Harden.

“With Toronto, they’ve been chomping at the bit since the beginning of the season,” Mitchell said. “A lot of talent. Brandon Ingram has obviously played in big games. Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley. They got Jakob Poeltl. They got young fellas over there who are really good. They got a good coach. That crowd is loud and it will definitely be an intense playoff series. If we ended up lined up against them, [I’m] definitely excited to go, and I know they will be as well.”

The following is Mitchell’s sixth diary with Andscape this season.

A playoff game is like war. Every little detail matters. Every possession. Every 3. Every layup. Every free throw. Every turnover. Every block. Every defensive stop. The crowd. It’s just one of those things where it takes a lot out of you. It takes everything out of you just to play one, and you got to do it again and again and again. People always say, “Man, that playoff intensity, I wish you could create it throughout the whole season.” It’s tough to do. It’s hard to do that because it just takes so much out of you every single time. I love it and I can’t wait for it.

I feel like with the championship aspirations that I have, that we have, there’s always going to be pressure. I’ve made it out of the second round and whatever, right? But I’m always going to pressure myself. The external pressure doesn’t get [to be] too much. It’s not one of those things for us as a team. We make the moves, we try to get further, and the chips fall where they may. We have the talent. Now I’m telling us to go out there and do it. But ultimately the pressure, especially the outside noise, man, it’s just noise. We just got to focus on taking the first-round matchup seriously — whoever we play and whoever we play next round — and maybe just go from there.

I would grade my season, I would say, an A to an A-minus. I feel a lot of things happened this [season]. We’ve had injuries. We were 17-16. It’s probably my best statistical season and probably my best season overall, I think you can say. But I just feel like this [season], based on the regular season, there was just so much that I did. I wanted to be in the MVP conversation a little bit more, but when you don’t win, it’s hard. And that’s why I always tell people, “You want all these individual awards. You want all these different things. But winning and team success matters more than anything.” So, that’s where I have to bump myself down from A-plus to an A or an A-minus. We had a lot of success. We’re a four seed, whatever, but it’s hard, right? I’m always going to be tough on myself.

If I look at what we’ve done and with the young guys, I’m really happy with the way the season turned out. I’m really happy with them, especially because they played their butts off. In the same token, I want to win games and I feel like that’s ultimately how you’re judged. That’s why I put myself down because I feel like in order to be in that conversation, you have to win games. At one point we were 17-16 and now here we are — it’s a 50-win season. So, it’s a blessing. It’s definitely a really good season, but that’s a long-winded answer to an A and A-minus.

The only thing [Harden and I] have even talked about was when he first got traded: “Let’s do whatever we possibly can. Let’s take no shortcuts. Let’s not shortchange anything. Let’s hold everybody accountable.” That was pretty much the conversation, and that was in L.A. after our first practice at USC. That was the first thing we said. We got out to a hot start, things went smoothly, then we had our ups and downs. But I think we’re in a place where we’re just not going to leave any stone unturned. If you can look at yourself in the mirror and say you did everything you needed possible as a group, that’s something you can really live on. If we were to do that, which I believe we will as a team, we’ll ultimately be there in the end.

For [Harden and I] to have the relationship we had prior to the trade, it made it a lot easier. This was something that I still find crazy at times, because we were battling my first [season when I was with the Utah Jazz]. That was my first introduction to the playoffs, for real. I was playing against him over there in Houston, him and CP [Chris Paul]. So that was a pretty wild thing. And now here we are trying to accomplish the same goal. I think we’re pretty similar as far as energy and vibes. So, that’s not an issue. And like I said, the level of accountability, the level of IQ, the way he thinks the game, the way he sees the game, and the way I see the game, it definitely benefits each other. He’s quieter. I’m more vocal. When he speaks, I feel like it’s even more powerful because it gives us an additional voice other than myself. He doesn’t really say too much, but that’s what the group needs.

On top of that, he’s coachable. We’re both coachable. We both want to be told like, “Hey, this can be better, that can be better. We need you to box out. We need you to dive for loose balls.” Whatever it may be. Sprint to the corner. That’s something that when you have two guys who are at the levels that we’re at, to be able to have that for the group, it’s great.

I try not to change much in the playoffs. If anything, you eliminate a little bit of the distraction. If people come watch the game, they don’t stay at [my] house. But outside of that, I’m on [NBA] 2K. That’s me. I’m playing the game, playing Xbox. I’m screaming with my friends. Then when it’s time to go to work, it’s time to go to work. But you don’t try to make a drastic change to your routine and habits. That’s all this is, whether it’s on the court, off the court, it’s all what you’ve been practicing up until this point. The one thing I have practiced is not going with the flow, but like adapting to it. Sometimes, I may be at the gym a little bit longer — that changes your schedule — not really being so routine-oriented always, allowing the schedule to kind of be in flux, and understand that, “Hey, the plane may be an hour late.” What does that mean for you? Or, “The bus may be an hour late. We may get stuck in traffic.” What happens? Where does your mental go? Keep your mental [strong] understanding that anything can happen off the court once you step into the arena.

Right now, wedding stuff is not to the side. Right now, we’re still going. I’ve had about a few days [off] and I have another week or so. So, we’re still doing a bunch of things. But [my fiancée Coco Jones] understands that when the playoffs come, it won’t be as intense. Obviously, when we have our days off, maybe a few questions here and there, a few different things. But I’m still waiting on certain people’s responses back. A certain individual who made a big fuss all over the internet still hasn’t responded to our wedding invitation. So, [Boston Celtics guard] Jaylen Brown, please get your response in. I’ve called you twice or three times. So, he’s not invited. But for him to go out there and make a whole big deal [saying], “I get an invite,” and not respond is pretty crazy. But no, that’s pretty much my job.

I’ve got all my teammates. Just got on Ev [Evan Mobley]. I did go to Ev’s mom to make sure he responded. I have to get [invitations] sent out to the new guys that we have: James, Keon [Ellis], Dennis [Schroder]. So, that’s my job. My job isn’t too hard. She takes care of everything else.

The road to the Finals, it starts with Round 1. We’ve all been there and we’re not looking ahead. I’m not sitting here saying, “Oh, you can face [this team] or face [that team] and do this.” But everybody talks about the East being wide open. I personally think it’s at its most competitive. It’s a situation where obviously you have Detroit, Boston, us, New York, right at the top four. But a lot of teams throughout can surprise. You got Atlanta, you got Toronto, you got Charlotte. There are so many teams throughout the top 10. There are so many teams that can really make some noise. So, you got to take one game at a time. The opportunity for us is right there.

I’ve been trying to name [my over-the-head offensive move] for months. I’ve heard different names. I’ve heard “The Spider.” I like that one. “Spider Shake.” I think our broadcast calls it that. “Over the Top.” “The Spin Move.” I got to figure out a name for it, I really do. So, people who see this, please send ideas. It’s tougher in high school because they call it an offensive foul. They call it a travel. You can be mad getting called for travel for doing it, but I’m so dominant going right. That’s why I tell people all the time it starts with that. If I’m not a dominant right-hand driver to where people are trying to cut me off, then none of this works.

So, I tell people from the foundation to be dominant going each way. If you’re lefty, be dominant going left to where they say, “He can’t get to his left hand. He can’t get to his right hand.” That’s how it always works is because everybody thinks they’re going that way. Then once you go over the top, everybody’s hands are low and no one’s hands are really high. I’ve gotten guys a few times where people have deflected it out of bounds or I’ve lost it. Two people have blocked it. But it’s one of those things where you’re so dynamic going one way, if you don’t try to cut me off then it’s going to keep falling. If you do, then you get to move over to the top and it gets you to a spot on the paint. Most of the time it’s right by the dots. You’re shooting a floater. I have to go and deal with the 7-footers of the world down there. That’s kind of where it all came from. I tell people all the time I got it from D-Wade [Dwyane Wade] and Kyrie [Irving] and kind of made it my own thing now. So, it’s a staple.

Note: The University of Louisville men’s basketball team secured two major commitments on April 12 in former Kansas center Flory Bidunga and former Oregon guard Jackson Shelstad. Mitchell gave both a sales pitch that likely helped seal the deal for his former college.

[On April 11], I got off the phone with two of our commits, Jackson and Flory. People think because we are who we are as far as athletes, celebrities, whatever you want to call it, we are unreachable, untouchable. For me, when I was in college, I always give credit to [former NBA guard] Rajon Rondo. He always played pickup [basketball] even though he went to Kentucky. He made himself accessible to us. If you want to play, we’re here to play ones, fives, whatever.

Being in with a baseball background [because of his father, Donovan Mitchell Sr., Mets director of diversity, equity and inclusion], seeing guys with the Mets like David Wright, [José] Reyes, Pedro Martínez, all those guys allowed me to kind of be around. I’ve always known that’s huge. That goes a long way. For me with these kids, what I tell them is, “Even if you don’t go to Louisville, I’m still here for you. I’m a valuable resource. I still want to help you get to the best situation you can.” I tell kids all the time that I’m always going to be pro-Louisville, for sure, and Louisville is the greatest program in the country.

What PK [Louisville men’s basketball head coach Pat Kelsey] and them are doing over there is definitely continuing to take it one step at a time. And obviously with Mikel [Brown Jr.] getting hurt this year, things didn’t go our way, but we’re making moves. We’re changing the culture, bringing it back to way it was. You can see it, you can feel it. That’s something that makes my job easier when I say, “Hey, look at Louisville.” In the same token, I don’t want people to always feel like if you don’t go to Louisville, then I’m unreachable. I try to make sure I’m available for kids and just being able to say, “Hey, I’m here to help,” as somebody that obviously is who he is in the space of basketball.

So, when I talk to kids and say, “Hey, look at Louisville,” it’s like, “Hey, also go where you have peace.” For me, that was Louisville. I was very much at peace. Obviously, I didn’t have the NIL stuff like they do now, but just being able to find peace, a passionate fan base, a passionate coach [Rick Pitino] and someone that’ll get you to the next level. The Louisville brand is very strong, and obviously they get to wear my shoes and my gear at the time, so what better place than Louisville?

The post Donovan Mitchell diary: ‘Every detail matters. Every possession.’ appeared first on Andscape.