Donovan Mitchell reveals how drinks fueled his 71-point game
Donovan Mitchell says a few New Year's drinks the night before his career-high 71-point game against the Chicago Bulls may have helped fuel that historic night. The Cleveland Cavaliers star shared the rare admission on the Cousins podcast, stressing he has never drunk before a game otherwise.
Speaking with NBA legends Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, Mitchell linked the Jan. 2, 2023 overtime thriller to an unusual New Year's Eve routine—and made clear it was a one-time exception. Fans following celebrity breaking news have latched onto the candid clip.
Key Takeaways
- Mitchell scored a career-high 71 points as Cleveland beat Chicago 145-134 in overtime on Jan. 2, 2023.
- He told the Cousins podcast he had a few drinks the night before after celebrating New Year's in Cleveland.
- Mitchell said he has never drunk before a game otherwise and has not done it since.
- He suggested those drinks "probably" helped him have that legendary scoring night.
What did Donovan Mitchell say about drinking before the game?
On the Cousins podcast, Mitchell walked through the schedule that led into his explosion. Cleveland faced the Bulls on New Year's Eve, celebrated in Cleveland, then tipped off again the next day.
"I've never drank before a game in my life. It was New Year's. So I did have a drink — a few drinks — the night before the game," he recalled, according to Fox News OutKick.
"Never done that in my career. Haven't done it since. So I tell people like that was probably what, you know, allowed me to have the night I had."
BasketNews later amplified the same admission, underscoring how rare the confession sounded from a perennial All-Star who usually treats game nights as strictly business.
How big was Mitchell's 71-point performance?
The outing remains one of the signature nights of Mitchell's career. He poured in 71 points in a 145-134 overtime victory over Chicago, a career high that still tops highlight reels years later.
That scoring binge arrived on the second day of 2023, right after the New Year's celebration he described. Mitchell's frank take now reframes the night as equal parts skill, timing, and an unplanned toast.
Why does this admission matter for Donovan Mitchell's legend?
Mitchell framed the story as an exception, not a blueprint. He stressed he never drank before a game before that night and has not repeated the experiment.
For NBA fans and the wider culture audience, the quote is instant sports lore: a Cavaliers star tying a historic scoring explosion to a few New Year's drinks, then drawing a hard line that it will not become a ritual.
Whether the booze truly "allowed" the masterpiece is impossible to prove. What is clear is that Donovan Mitchell believes that unusual night-before routine helped unlock one of the greatest individual performances of his Cleveland tenure.