Donovan Mitchell suffers sprained ankle in Cavaliers' blowout loss to Pacers

The injury added to the insult of a historic first-half beatdown.

Donovan Mitchell sprained his left ankle while warming up at halftime on Sunday to become the latest casualty in the Cleveland Cavaliers' injury-plagued Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Indiana Pacers. The All-Star guard felt pain while planting his feet to shoot a 3-pointer, and after being checked by the team's trainers, he limped to the locker room and didn't play another minute.

This is how Donovan Mitchell injured his ankle. He went out to warm up at halftime and hurt his ankle.

This game was cursed all around for the #Cavs.

Ooof.
pic.twitter.com/3AQWVl3QxV
— John Sabol (@John_Sabol) May 12, 2025

The Pacers had already put plenty of hurt on Mitchell and his teammates by then.

Indiana carried a 41-point cushion into the break at 80-39, tying the NBA playoff record for largest halftime lead. The Pacers outscored Cleveland 42-16 in the second quarter and shot 60% from the field, including 12-of-18 on 3-pointers, in the first half.

After Indiana completed its 129-109 victory to take a 3-1 series lead, the postgame spotlight fell on Mitchell and his status for Game 5 on Tuesday in Cleveland.

Mitchell confirmed to reporters that he indeed suffered a left ankle sprain and will undergo an MRI on Monday to "check to make sure I'm good," according to The Athletic's Joe Vardon.

"I'll see you on Tuesday," added Mitchell, who left Gainbridge Fieldhouse without a walking boot or crutches.

That'll have to pass as a hopeful prognosis for a Cavaliers team in desperate need of good news. After a 64-win regular season, top-seeded Cleveland faces an earlier-than-expected postseason exit.

Donovan Mitchell injury, Pacers blowout win put Cavaliers on the brink of elimination

By Joe Lago | 2:59 AM EDT