The battle of the NBA's top-two seeds will be held in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Wednesday night when the 30-5 OKC Thunder visit Cleveland to take on the 31-4 Cavaliers.
Already a record-setting game, this marks the first time in league history that two opposing teams will square off while boasting a winning percentage of 85.0 percent through 35 games played. Leading into the exhibition, it's evident that fans, pundits, and even players are brimming with excitement ahead of the contest's 7 PM (ET) tip-off.
Though they may both be number one seeds, from a schematic standpoint the Thunder and Cavaliers are two rather different teams. The former prides itself on having the best defense (102.7) in the association while the latter ranks as the top on offense (121.3).
However, during his practice media availability session on Tuesday, Cleveland cornerstone Donovan Mitchell was asked to compare and contrast the two organizations.
In doing so, the All-Star went on to acknowledge the fact that while they may have some similarities (particularly when it relates to their mindsets), their differences are quite evident, with perhaps their biggest coming in the form of usage between him and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in their respective team's offenses.
Donovan Mitchell says Thunder 'rely heavily' on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
"Offensively, obviously they rely heavily [and] a lot more on Shai than I think they do here on myself. I think that's by design... That's worked for them that's continuously worked for them and this has worked for us," Mitchell said.
As noted by Mitchell, this is a prime example of "different ways to winning" in this league and that, in all likelihood, Gilgeous-Alexander's heavy usage on offense is "by design" rather than sheer necessity.
However, how reliant Oklahoma City's offensive system is on their superstar guard is painfully apparent, and the advanced metrics only strengthen this sentiment.
On the season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander boasts the third-highest usage rate in the entire league at 32.4 out of those who have played in 20 or more games. On top of this, the Thunder put up 116.2 points per 100 possessions while the guard is active on the floor and see their scoring punch plummet down to a shockingly low 104.8 points with him sidelined.
Comparatively, Mitchell ranks all the way down at 18 in usage (29.0) while Cleveland surprisingly finds themselves getting even better offensively with the guard off the floor (131.4 points per 100 possessions) compared to when he's on it (119.3 points).
Regardless of this pointed-out discrepancy in schemes, however, Donovan Mitchell was far from disparaging with his take on the Thunder, as he acknowledged that Wednesday's game will be "fun and a great matchup for both teams," and even went as far as to say that it will be "the ultimate test for us."