SARASOTA, Fla. – For several weeks after his Cleveland Cavaliers went from 2025 NBA title hopefuls to a stunning early playoff ousting, All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell was incredulous, shocked and asking himself over and over, “What could I have done more?”

“It was shocking for about another two-and-a-half, three weeks,” Mitchell told Andscape. “Waking up and not really having anything to do but watching life go on in the NBA. And you’re just at home. But ‘disbelief’ or ‘shock’ is the word.

“Man, it took a while. You try. You think you’re fine. And then you’re like, ‘Man, why am I sitting at home waiting, doing nothing?’ ”

Mitchell wasn’t alone. The “Core 4” for the Cavaliers – which also includes Jarrett Allen, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley – were equally pained after being eliminated by the Indiana Pacers in five games in the second round of the playoffs last season.

“I haven’t gotten over it yet,” Garland told Andscape. “It’s still like a bitter taste in my mouth.”

Said Mobley to Andscape: “I don’t know that it all the way goes away. But you have to move on from it a little bit to clear your mind. I feel like I cleared my mind throughout the summer and I’m coming into this season [refreshed] and ready to go. But you’ve always got that memory and that feeling when it’s all over, so you can just use that as fuel.”

Said Allen to Andscape: “Did it bother me? Yeah. But I understand that we messed up and put ourselves in that situation.

Last season, the Cavaliers appeared primed to compete for an NBA championship for the first time since LeBron James brought Cleveland its lone title in 2016. It was the second season that Mitchell, Garland, Mobley and Allen joined forces together. The Cavaliers finished the 2024-25 NBA regular season with an Eastern Conference-best 64-18 record, which Allen described as “special.”

While the then-reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks were expected to stand in their way, Cleveland was still the No. 1 seed and dominant since last season’s start. The Cavaliers, however, had room for caution after being eliminated earlier than expected in the second round of the playoffs in 2024.

The individual accolades were abundant for the Cavs. Mobley was the NBA Defensive Player of the Year. Head coach Kenny Atkinson, in his first season in Cleveland, was named the NBA Coach of the Year. Mitchell was named to the All-NBA first team, and Mobley made second team. Mitchell, Mobley and Garland were NBA All-Stars. None of the aforementioned accolades offered promise nor translated to greatness in the playoffs.

Allen said that blame was collective, as “little mistakes compounded the big mistakes.”

“We put in all this work over the [season]. No. 1 seed. Swept the first round. And to see it crumble was a little bit of frustration,” Allen said.

Said Mobley: “You still have to celebrate a little bit and be happy for what you did do.”

After the Cavaliers were eliminated at home in a 114-105 loss to the Pacers on May 13, a stunned Mitchell returned to the floor at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland and sat stone-faced on the bench with his cell phone in his hands.

“Shock, to be honest with you,” Mitchell said. “There is a picture of me sitting on the bench afterwards and all that. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I just felt like, there was no way. Sixty-five wins. Three All-Stars. Defensive player of the year. All-NBAs [selections]. Coach of the year. Everything. All-NBA first team. It was all slated.

“We sweep the first round and then. … That was obviously shocking.”

Said Garland: “My thoughts were we just let a year just go to waste and let it slip. A championship kind of year slipped and got away from us.”

Mitchell told his teammates as the offseason arrived to make sure they get in “one more rep, one more step and one more lift” during the offseason to improve. Like Mitchell, the rest of the Core 4 also needed time to reflect, heal from painful memories, and also enjoy life away from the arena.

Mitchell got engaged to R&B singer Coco Jones on July 11, spent a month touring with her during the offseason, and received “the best sleep of his life” on her tour bus. Allen was married during the offseason to Jordan January and pulled off a dance routine from “High School Musical” during the ceremony. Garland received left big toe surgery during the offseason, hosted the “DG Celebrity Softball Game” for his charitable foundation in Cleveland on Aug. 2, and spent time with his AAU program DG Elite. Mobley celebrated his 24th birthday in grand fashion on June 24 and vacationed with his older brother, Isaiah, in Costa Rica.

“[Jones] knew it was coming, but I don’t know if she knew it was coming at that moment,” said Mitchell about his engagement. “But it was special. A special vacation. A special moment. Everything worked out perfectly.”

There were rumors that the Cavaliers were considering trading Allen before the 2024-25 season because of concerns on whether he and Mobley could play well together. The arrival of Atkinson, who coached Allen with the Brooklyn Nets, ended that possibility. But while the Core 4 players were amazing together last regular season, disappointing endings of NBA seasons oftentimes come with change.

Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman, however, said he never considered breaking up the Core 4 last offseason. In fact, Altman noted that he also has a commitment from his star foursome long-term as Mitchell and Garland are signed through the 2027-28 season, Allen through 2028-29 and Mobley through 2029-30.

Altman also said their character, love for Cleveland, camaraderie and growth together are important as well.

“The hardest part on my end is getting the talent to Cleveland, and that is the hardest part,” Altman told Andscape. “We have really high character guys. But that Core 4 want to be in Cleveland. Each one of them to a man has signed an extension to be in Cleveland. That is meaningful to us and we want to be able to continue to build that.

“The average age is 26.5 with those guys, and that’s young. We haven’t come close to reaching the ceiling. They deserve to run it back.”

Mitchell and Allen also added that recent NBA champions like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Boston Celtics, the Denver Nuggets and the Milwaukee Bucks were built from within. Allen noted the “unique talent” that blends well together and sacrifices for one another, and believes that is a big reason the Cavaliers’ brass opted not to make change.

“When Luka [Doncic] got traded [from the Dallas Mavericks to the Los Angeles Lakers], anything is possible,” Mitchell said. “That’s obviously a thing. Anything can happen, but I do believe, and we all believe in the organization, in the group.”

Said Allen: “Nuggets, Milwaukee when they won, OKC last [season], teams are building from the ground up with what they have.”

Said Mobley: “I don’t see why we would change.”

“The average age is 26.5 with those guys, and that’s young. We haven’t come close to reaching the ceiling. They deserve to run it back.” – Cavaliers president of basketball operations Koby Altman

While the Cavs’ Core 4 have jelled well on the court, they are all uniquely different off of it.

Mitchell is the biggest leader, the most popular Cavaliers player and the leader in scoring and commercials. He is known by teammates as being chill and intelligent, and added that he is “the most talkative one.”

The 6-11 Mobley is perhaps the quietest player of the four, but he is starting to become a more outspoken leader with age and experience and has no problem holding teammates accountable.

The 3-point specialist Garland is the self-described comedian of the Cavaliers who tries to get his teammates to “smile and laugh.” Mobley added that Garland was the “most caring.”

The 6-11 Allen was described as the “brains of this group” by Garland. Allen, who also has made a computer from scratch, is extremely comfortable in his uniqueness and not the most responsive in text chains.

“We are different, but we are all the same at the same time,” Allen said. “We all have similar personalities. We all have this way of being just good teammates, leading our own way and doing our own thing. But at the same time, when you start to deep dive into our personalities, it just splits to four different paths.”

Said Garland: “I really call them my brothers. They mean a lot to me. They make my life a lot easier.”

Said Mobley: “We played together for a few years now. Every year we get closer and closer. We know each other’s tendencies even more. Off the court, we’re pretty close. We talk a lot during the summer as well and stay connected. We’re all on the same page. It’s like a brotherhood.”

Yes, it’s light, fun and a brotherhood off the floor for the Core 4. But on the floor this season, they expect growth, an even higher level of accountability and greater success — success that will be more appreciated after falling short in the playoffs.

“It’s progressed to a more grown-up approach where it’s like, ‘Hey, we can be cool, but in between these lines it’s business.’ And we have to set the tone for the group,” Mitchell said. “That is what is really unique about us. When you see us we’re smiling, happy and whatever. But I also think we have an approach and kind of know each other enough where we can have those conversations and that level of accountability that isn’t always the case in the league.

“It’s been good, but it hasn’t been great enough yet. And that’s where we have to take it to another level with this four.”

The Cavaliers added veterans in point guard Lonzo Ball and forward-center Larry Nance Jr., son of former Cavaliers forward Larry Nance. Forward De’Andre Hunter, who was acquired from the Atlanta Hawks just before the last trade deadline in February, should be better acclimated entering this season.

Atkinson is certainly in a more comfortable situation in his second season coaching the Cavaliers. With the Celtics and Pacers possibly missing their biggest stars (Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton, respectively) for the season because of injuries, the Cavs and the Knicks appear to have the best shot at the East crown.

No matter what happens this regular season, however, the Core 4 knows its lasting reputation will truly be made in the postseason. Garland said the Cavaliers are not worried about “outside noise” and all showed up early to Cleveland to prepare for training camp. Allen added that the entire team put in the mental and physical work in the offseason to improve.

Mitchell said there “is no winning unless we win,” and the reward will eventually come with hard work. To a man, the Core 4 players are confident that a breakthrough winning season is on the horizon.

“What is it going to be like?” Allen asked. “I can see my body holding the trophy, but then your face is a blurred-out kind of thing. That is part of the dream, part of the belief. But I’ve never done it, so I can’t see myself yet.”

Garland, who hopes to be ready at the start of the season following toe surgery, said: “Everyone judges you over what you have done in the playoffs. Everyone knows that in this gym we’ve got some ways to go. We haven’t done anything yet, but we still have a chip on our shoulder.”

Said Mobley: “We spent hours and hours – me, DG, JA and Don – talking throughout the summer and trying to prepare to go farther and farther this [season]. We all know we have more to give. …

“We’re going to keep that chip on our shoulders. And we’re going to show them.”

The biggest star of the Core 4 says he often daydreams of a second NBA title for the Cavaliers. Mitchell said he has found motivation in the team training facility: a picture of the 2016 NBA championship parade in Cleveland.

Mitchell, a six-time NBA All-Star, says that for the Core 4 there is nothing more to say because the expectations speak for themselves. He also believes the time is now to change the history for the Core 4.

“I look at Evan Mobley, he wants it. D.G. wants it. J.A. wants it,” Mitchell said. “It’s just a matter of when that moment comes are we going to push through that? Are we going find a way to get through that? We’ve had enough time where we feel this is the time. And quite frankly, if it happens again, it’s unfortunate. I’d be p—ed off. I’d be throwing stuff and screaming. But we’re not going to stop. That’s who you want to go to war with – continually fighting, pushing and plugging. …

“Words are words. But I find myself daydreaming about [a title], I’m not going to lie.”

The post Cleveland Cavaliers ‘Core 4’ dreaming of an NBA title appeared first on Andscape.