The play on both ends of the court from Evan Mobley and Jalen Duren could play a huge part in a pivotal Game 5.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons have reached the hump day portion of their conference semifinal series where after Wednesday one team will be on the verge of elimination and the other on the verge of moving on.
Except it’s hard to tell which team is leaning in which direction at the moment. The series has been fairly evenly matched and played, with three of the four games experiencing tight fourth quarters, and the home teams taking care of their business on their court.
This much is certain: Donovan Mitchell has taken the lead in the best-player-in-the-series race, punctuated by his 39-point second half in Game 4. Aside from a few chilly stretches shooting the ball in the first two games, Mitchell has been impactful and answered the call for Cleveland.
“It’s definitely sustainable,” said Cavs guard James Harden, about his tandem with Mitchell. “We got work to do, but I think we found something. We’ve got to be even better going into Game 5 on the road.”
Yes, the rigors of the road — the Cavs haven’t won away from Cleveland in the playoffs. That’s one advantage for Detroit.
Here’s what to watch in Game 5 Wednesday (8 ET, ESPN):
1. More from Mobley
It was no coincidence that Cleveland scrambled back into this series when Evan Mobley played better. And now he’s clearly the second-best player on the Cavs right now, a wing who has shown he can defend, excel in switches and make the most of his scoring chances. If this keeps up, the Cavs have one less worry against the Pistons.
His Game 4 was splendid; he had eight rebounds, five blocks and three steals which summarized his defensive impact. Not many players can offer both rim protection and cut off passing lanes. Mobley’s strength lies in his versatility; he can guard bigs and also step out and cover the perimeter.
Best of all for Cleveland, he kept a high motor in Game 4 and never disappeared, making plays at both ends that helped Cleveland deliver a big second half.
“He was everywhere,” said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson. “We know within our locker room how great he’s playing.”
With the main source of the Cavs’ strength being in the backcourt, Mobley can provide some balance scoring and also provide the level of defense that’s higher than what Harden and Mitchell can provide.
2. More from Duren
The support from the home crowd should help. His teammates are behind him. His coach refuses to sit him during important stretches, perhaps to avoid hurting his confidence.
Ultimately, though, Jalen Duren must fix his issues himself. That’s where it starts. The Pistons’ big man, who had a breakout 2025-26 season when he routinely dropped double-doubles and played solid defense, has been mostly muted during the playoffs. And those warts are especially visible right now, when the Pistons are searching for a consistent co-star to Cade Cunningham and a force in the paint.
At least Duren is owning it: “I just got to be better. I have no excuses. I’m my biggest critic. I know what I have to do to contribute to my team.”
He actually had a decent showing against Cleveland’s front line initially in this series but has disappeared since. Meanwhile, Jarrett Allen’s confidence and energy source is growing by the game; the Cavs’ center is taking advantage of Duren’s issues and becoming a bigger factor in this series with his rebounding and rim protection.
The situation is putting Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff in a bind. Paul Reed has played better than Duren and the backup is pushing for more playing time, although Bickerstaff seems hesitant to make a major change.
“You don’t just give up on guys when they’re having a hard time,” Bickerstaff said. “You’ve gotta give guys confidence, you’ve gotta give guys belief.”
This is true to an extent. It’s hard to turn away from players who helped you get this far. But let’s see where Bickerstaff’s loyalty lies if Duren can’t escape this fog and the Pistons’ top-seeded season is suddenly on the line.
3. Game 5 X-factors
Here are the candidates aside from Reed who could make a difference Wednesday:
Sam Merrill, Cavs. He has been slowed by a hamstring issue which forced him to miss a game in this series, and he has been largely invisible since scoring 13 points in Game Seven against the Raptors in the first round. But that game showed how useful Merrill can be if given the opportunity to shoot 3s, his specialty.
Dennis Schröder, Cavs. Ball handling — that’s what he can give the Cavs and how he can relieve Harden of heavy ball usage. When Schröder did this during the games in Cleveland, Harden’s turnovers were reduced.
Daniss Jenkins, Pistons. He was so solid off the bench in the first round and the first two games of this series, then turned to vapor the last two games, with no steals and four total points. The Pistons could use his change-of-pace attack and for him to return to be a disruption for the opposition.
Caris LeVert, Pistons. Lost in the Pistons’ lopsided Game 4 loss was how well LeVert played; you could argue he was the best player on the floor for Detroit. Finally given minutes in the playoffs, LeVert scored 24 points in 31 minutes, that was just three points shy of his previous appearances in this entire post-season. And he shot 10-16 and excelled in transition.
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at spowell@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
