Donovan Mitchell has brought redemption and relief to himself and the Cavaliers.
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A year after being bullied and bounced in the first round of the NBA playoffs, Cleveland are moving on: Mitchell made sure.
"This is why I'm here," he said. "It's my job."
Mitchell scored 39 points and Caris LeVert added 15 as Cleveland rallied for a 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday in Game 7 to advance in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
They next face the top-seeded Boston Celtics, who went 2-1 against the Cavaliers in the regular season.
"I'm pretty sure everybody thinks they're going to come in and kick our ass," Mitchell said.
"So for us to continue to stay level-headed throughout, and just be who we are, that's the biggest thing."
The Cavs trailed by 18 in the first half and were in danger of being eliminated early for the second year in a row.
But Mitchell, who scored 50 in a Game 6 loss at Orlando and has been battling a left knee injury for months, put the Cavs on his back.
He carried them past an up-and-coming Orlando team whose playoff inexperience showed in the second half.
"I don't mean this disrespectful, but it doesn't really mean much," Mitchell said as he looked forward to the Boston challenge.
"We didn't come in just to win the first round. We accomplished one goal, now we have to do it again. That's the mindset."
Paolo Banchero scored 38 - just 14 after halftime - and added 16 rebounds to lead the Magic, for whom Australian Joe Ingles also featured.
Cleveland were again without starting centre Jarrett Allen, who missed the final three games in the series with a painful rib injury sustained from an errant Magic elbow.
His status for the Boston series remains unknown.
Australian Associated Press
