Amid a tough start to the season, players need to stay grounded. The Cavaliers’ Donovan Mitchell made a late-night appearance last night as the team was in New York for a quick Knicks rematch with the Knick.

There are a few things the team can do to shake off Saturday’s defeat at their hands, and you can find all that information right here.

Meanwhile, let’s talk about Mitchell’s appearance with Jimmy Fallon.

Donovan Mitchell Hangs With Jimmy Fallon

From the minute he came out, Donovan Mitchell reminded us of the big personality he’s got. A guy who loves telling stories and just being out there. He recalled his early days of playing the drums and how he got into DJing.

“So my mom just had pots and pans," he started. "And I started just banging them around. And that’s where it started. Then, I was in the jazz band growing up. And then I told Quest (Questlove), I’m coming for your job soon. (Quest laughs) And it went from that, to now I’m DJ-ing. And my wife bought me a beautiful full-on DJ set."

There is an old NBA ad with Mitchell playing the drums, which is linked below if you’re looking for a refresher. And of course, Jimmy Fallon told the Cavs guard what happened the last time he watched him in person:

“By the way, I took my daughter to a Knicks game, and you destroyed the Knicks," Fallon said. "And I was very mad at you. But I was watching with her, and I’m like, she’s like, ‘He can’t miss.’ And I was like ‘Yeah, you’re right.’ I go ‘Please cover Donovan Mitchell. Because every time he’s not — every time you’re open, you kept draining shots. I was like, ‘Stop it. Stop it!’”

Cleveland is 1-7 in the past eight meetings with New York, so it must have been a few years. But Mitchell has averaged 28 points per game in his last 10 appearances against New York. He plays well in those contests. And in that last meeting, he had 37.

Donovan Mitchell vs. New York Knicks 11/7/2026

37 PTS | 13-22 FG | L 97-109 pic.twitter.com/cvn2CVD2Kb

— NBA Shooting Audit (@NBAShotAudit) November 8, 2026

Donovan Mitchell Talks Cavs-Knicks

Recalling Saturday night’s loss to the Knicks in Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell discussed the importance of closing out possessions:

“When you’re playing a team like that, right, you know they’re battle-tested," he said. "They obviously won a championship, they’ve been together since even before the NBA… And you understand that the little details matter so much more when you play teams like that. We lost the other night, really it was second-chance points. Giving a team like that multiple opportunities to score in a possession over and over again is going to be tough.”

New York is indeed a tough team, and they’ve now won four in a row. They defeated the Bucks by 32 points last night, and didn’t have to exert themselves all that much. As for the keys to a victory for the Cavs today, here’s what Mitchell had to say:

“Obviously, Jalen (Brunson), limiting him and making his catches tough," he said. "Same thing with KAT, and then, you know, closing possessions, and getting out and doing what we do.”

Spin.
Stepback.
DIME.

Catch 3Q of Knicks/Cavs on NBA TV! https://t.co/Zn05zN8tWL pic.twitter.com/VmhcZxTmyX

— NBA TV (@NBATV) November 8, 2026

Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson combined for 60 of New York’s 109 points in the first battle, so slowing them is absolutely paramount.

The Rest of the Time

Donovan Mitchell spoke about how he first got together with Coco Jones and some of the details of their summer wedding. He gifted a custom pair of shoes to Jimmy Fallon and brought pairs for his wife and daughters as well.

A surprisingly competitive game of one-cup pong saw Fallon take down Mitchell after a couple of errant tosses both ways. It was all in good fun. (They put in the Cavs guard’s cup, of course.) The full appearance is below.

Tonight’s game will tip off at 7:00 PM ET, and can be found on ESPN.Hopefully, there are some solutions.