Back-to-back home losses for the Cavaliers, who lost just seven times in 41 home games this season. A lot to think about for Kenny Atkinson to deliver the result. For Game 2 of the Conference semifinals, key contributors Evan Mobley, Darius Garland, and De’Andre Hunter were all out for Tuesday’s clash. It was left to Donovan Mitchell to pick up much of the slack. He did that, too, but he surely won’t be happy about what his coach had to say regarding his teammates.

After Game 1, Atkinson said about the Pacers crossing the line of physicality. “That line we’ve kind of been talking about where it became excessive. So, No. 1 was the non-call on De’Andre’s layup, which I don’t know … I felt he got absolutely obliterated and dislocated his thumb, so he’ll be questionable. And then Evan, around the same time, I can’t remember if it was before or after, (Myles) Turner contests his two-point shot, comes under, clearly under him. … I think you guys saw him limping the rest of the game.”

So, per Atkinson, Evan Mobley aggravated an ankle during the game, while DeAndre Hunter dislocated a thumb. Darius Garland, who previously picked up a toe injury during the Cavaliers’ sweep against the Miami Heat, has since been labeled day-to-day. It’s tough to win with three injured rotation players, so it was up to Donovan Mitchell to be the one-man show. And he did so capably, dropping 48 points on 15-of-30 shooting with nine assists, five rebounds, and four steals in 36 minutes.

But even Mitchell’s brilliance couldn’t save the Cavs from a brutal collapse in the final minute.

Up five with under a minute left, Cleveland looked poised to even the series — until a wild chain of events flipped everything. Pascal Siakam missed two free throws with 48 seconds to go, but Aaron Nesmith came flying in for a tip dunk to cut it to three. He then stepped in to draw an offensive foul on Mitchell, giving Indiana another shot. Siakam drove for a quick layup, slicing the lead to just one.

On the ensuing inbound, Andrew Nembhard — who pulled off a similar steal against Milwaukee — struck again, picking it clean. Tyrese Haliburton was fouled, missed the second of two free throws, chased down his own rebound, and buried a step-back dagger three with 1.1 seconds left to steal Game 2.

It was a sequence that left the Cavs stunned and gave Indiana its first 2-0 playoff series lead on the road since 1994. And after everything was said and done, Donovan Mitchell hobbled off at the end. And the COTY revealed it was a probable muscle fatigue issue. “Obviously we’ve done a good job managing, but this we had to go for this one, you know, we had to stick, you know. And there was, you know, he (Mitchell) has to come out there at the end, cuz he was cramping,” Atkinson shared.

While Mitchell’s status is unknown for Game 3 on Friday, it’s another concern for a Cleveland team that’s already dealing with plenty of injuries to key players.

Even before Donovan Mitchell’s crisis, Atkinson proceeded to call out the stakeholders

In their four battles, Indiana holds a 3-1 advantage in the regular season. Now, they have started the series with back-to-back wins at the Cavs’ home arena. After Game 2, the Coach pointed out that the exhaustion led to mental errors. The cause of exhaustion is very simple that three starters were out of this game. That’s when Atkinson’s direct message comes in.

“We really have to take a look … all of us are stakeholders in this league, and I want to make sure that we have our best players playing in the playoffs.” The HC was very vocal after game 1. “What bothers me is we have a Defensive Player of the Year, an All-Star, and a great player in DeAndre Hunter question because in my opinion, all three players, all the plays were excessive.”

Fatigue or no fatigue, as mentioned above, Tyrese Haliburton’s 3-point dagger seals the game. The Cavaliers were hanging on by their fingernails throughout the fourth quarter. Now they trail the Pacers, 2-0, in the best-of-seven series, and the task doesn’t get easier. The focus switched to Indianapolis for the next two games, which could seal their fate.

“We can’t worry about Game 4,” Atkinson said. “The only thing that matters is Game 3. We have to get healthy.” So, the coach very much knows what’s at stake here and is optimistic about his star players returning and helping Donovan Mitchell turn the tide.