Donovan Mitchell is heading into the most important offseason of his career
Donovan Mitchell placed his head in his hands last Thursday night, scratching his head as if he were out of answers. His season was over, the Utah Jazz suffering a Game 6 loss to the Dallas Mavericks that ended a series and simultaneously raised questions about an uncertain future.
One by one, the questions seemed to eat at him. He answered them in a soft voice that bordered on almost a whisper. A difficult season ended with a difficult defeat. And for one of the first times in his professional basketball career, Mitchell found himself on the receiving end of substantial criticism on how he played basketball.
Mitchell was transparent in his hurt. He was upfront in the fact that this season didn’t yield enough from Donovan Mitchell the basketball player. And he was resolute in his opinion about needing to improve throughout the summer. He didn’t run from the questions. He didn’t hide in his answers.
“There was a lot going on this year with all of us,” Mitchell said. “As a team, we didn’t rise to the occasion. We didn’t do enough. But I can’t put the blame anywhere else in that regard. It starts with me.”
It’s not a stretch to suggest Mitchell is heading into the most important offseason of his career, which will yield the most important season of his career. He has established himself as one of the most dynamic scorers in the league. When he gets it going, he’s a terrific offensive player from three levels. He’s tough to stay in front of off the dribble. He scores above the arc better than most. He’s developed a litany of moves inside the paint that leads to a more than reliable midrange game.
Off the court, he’s been one of the most influential players in the league, consistently using his voice in the name of social justice. Mitchell’s value to the Utah Jazz is absolute. That much is clear.
But, the Mavericks sent Mitchell a harsh message in that playoff series. That message? The rest of his game needs to evolve, on both ends of the floor. He wasn’t nearly good enough defensively, which is something Dallas exploited time and again. The decision-making with the ball in his hands has steadily improved over his career but still needs to get better.
Right now, Donovan Mitchell is an All-Star, and a borderline All-NBA basketball player. But the Jazz need more. They need him to take a leap, the same leap that some in his age group have taken this season, on both ends. The good news is that Mitchell himself knows this. He knows that in large measure, the Jazz didn’t rise to the level of a championship-contending team this season because he didn’t play well enough.
“I wasn’t where I wanted to be this year,” Mitchell said. “And there were times this year when the ball rolled out that we didn’t show that we wanted to be a team with championship aspirations.”
The Utah Jazz as a team weren’t nearly good enough this season, and not nearly as good as they were last season. Teams defended them with more efficiency. They didn’t shoot the ball collectively as well as they did last season. They weren’t nearly as healthy, nor nearly as cohesive. In many areas, it turned into a difficult and trying season for a franchise that thought it was primed to take a final step up the mountain toward title contention.
Mitchell’s season encapsulated that.
He was good — even very good — overall. He averaged 26 points per game, to go along with five assists and four rebounds. But, he shot 44 percent from the field and 35 percent from the 3-point line. He struggled defensively, and the Mavericks made it a priority to target him in switches. In December, he was at his best and earned the NBA’s Player of the Month honor.
Mitchell was an All-Star for the third consecutive season, which was deserved. But he won’t make any of the three All-NBA teams, which was a goal of his when the season started. Maybe most importantly, the explosion that’s always defined his game, his ability to consistently play above the rim wasn’t always there. The first step, which allowed him to touch the paint off the dribble at will was just a touch off. It made shots just a little bit more contested. It affected his ability to finish at the rim.
And it makes this offseason vital for him.
“I’m looking forward to working on my game all summer, and getting into the gym,” Mitchell said. “I’m looking forward to putting the work in.”
The Jazz are invested in Mitchell. They know that their ceiling as an organization is tied to Mitchell’s ceiling as a player. Once Luka Doncic overcame his strained calf and entered the fray against the Jazz, the Mavericks had the best player in the series by a healthy margin. Utah’s path to winning that series would have been Mitchell decreasing that margin, which he never did. For a guy who was once arguably the best player in a series featuring Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, that had to be disappointing.
More importantly, the Jazz need past-playoff Donovan Mitchell to become regular-season Donovan Mitchell. Not the scoring. They don’t need him to drop 35 points a night. But, the ability to impact a game for as long as he is on the floor. They need him to leap from an All-Star to one of the elite players in the league.
The question is can Mitchell be that? He’s still young, but when he turns 26 in September, he will be closer to the prime of his career than at the beginning of his career. And that’s another factor that makes this offseason important for Mitchell. It’s likely one of the last offseasons where he can expect significant improvement.
What the Jazz can be going forward depends on what improvements Mitchell can make. The Jazz have a long and interesting summer on deck. There will be multiple decisions that will be defined as significant and difficult. And the Western Conference landscape is as treacherous as ever.
Mitchell defines the Jazz now and going forward, on and off the court. It’s why the Jazz are hoping he shakes his relatively subpar season — for his standards — and comes back strong in October.
Donovan Mitchell is heading into the most important offseason of his career
Donovan Mitchell placed his head in his hands last Thursday night, scratching his head as if he were out of answers. His season was over, the Utah Jazz suffering a Game 6 loss to the Dallas Mavericks that ended a series and simultaneously raised questions about an uncertain future.
One by one, the questions seemed to eat at him. He answered them in a soft voice that bordered on almost a whisper. A difficult season ended with a difficult defeat. And for one of the first times in his professional basketball career, Mitchell found himself on the receiving end of substantial criticism on how he played basketball.
Mitchell was transparent in his hurt. He was upfront in the fact that this season didn’t yield enough from Donovan Mitchell the basketball player. And he was resolute in his opinion about needing to improve throughout the summer. He didn’t run from the questions. He didn’t hide in his answers.
“There was a lot going on this year with all of us,” Mitchell said. “As a team, we didn’t rise to the occasion. We didn’t do enough. But I can’t put the blame anywhere else in that regard. It starts with me.”
It’s not a stretch to suggest Mitchell is heading into the most important offseason of his career, which will yield the most important season of his career. He has established himself as one of the most dynamic scorers in the league. When he gets it going, he’s a terrific offensive player from three levels. He’s tough to stay in front of off the dribble. He scores above the arc better than most. He’s developed a litany of moves inside the paint that leads to a more than reliable midrange game.
Off the court, he’s been one of the most influential players in the league, consistently using his voice in the name of social justice. Mitchell’s value to the Utah Jazz is absolute. That much is clear.
But, the Mavericks sent Mitchell a harsh message in that playoff series. That message? The rest of his game needs to evolve, on both ends of the floor. He wasn’t nearly good enough defensively, which is something Dallas exploited time and again. The decision-making with the ball in his hands has steadily improved over his career but still needs to get better.
Right now, Donovan Mitchell is an All-Star, and a borderline All-NBA basketball player. But the Jazz need more. They need him to take a leap, the same leap that some in his age group have taken this season, on both ends. The good news is that Mitchell himself knows this. He knows that in large measure, the Jazz didn’t rise to the level of a championship-contending team this season because he didn’t play well enough.
“I wasn’t where I wanted to be this year,” Mitchell said. “And there were times this year when the ball rolled out that we didn’t show that we wanted to be a team with championship aspirations.”
The Utah Jazz as a team weren’t nearly good enough this season, and not nearly as good as they were last season. Teams defended them with more efficiency. They didn’t shoot the ball collectively as well as they did last season. They weren’t nearly as healthy, nor nearly as cohesive. In many areas, it turned into a difficult and trying season for a franchise that thought it was primed to take a final step up the mountain toward title contention.
Mitchell’s season encapsulated that.
He was good — even very good — overall. He averaged 26 points per game, to go along with five assists and four rebounds. But, he shot 44 percent from the field and 35 percent from the 3-point line. He struggled defensively, and the Mavericks made it a priority to target him in switches. In December, he was at his best and earned the NBA’s Player of the Month honor.
Mitchell was an All-Star for the third consecutive season, which was deserved. But he won’t make any of the three All-NBA teams, which was a goal of his when the season started. Maybe most importantly, the explosion that’s always defined his game, his ability to consistently play above the rim wasn’t always there. The first step, which allowed him to touch the paint off the dribble at will was just a touch off. It made shots just a little bit more contested. It affected his ability to finish at the rim.
And it makes this offseason vital for him.
“I’m looking forward to working on my game all summer, and getting into the gym,” Mitchell said. “I’m looking forward to putting the work in.”
The Jazz are invested in Mitchell. They know that their ceiling as an organization is tied to Mitchell’s ceiling as a player. Once Luka Doncic overcame his strained calf and entered the fray against the Jazz, the Mavericks had the best player in the series by a healthy margin. Utah’s path to winning that series would have been Mitchell decreasing that margin, which he never did. For a guy who was once arguably the best player in a series featuring Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, that had to be disappointing.
More importantly, the Jazz need past-playoff Donovan Mitchell to become regular-season Donovan Mitchell. Not the scoring. They don’t need him to drop 35 points a night. But, the ability to impact a game for as long as he is on the floor. They need him to leap from an All-Star to one of the elite players in the league.
The question is can Mitchell be that? He’s still young, but when he turns 26 in September, he will be closer to the prime of his career than at the beginning of his career. And that’s another factor that makes this offseason important for Mitchell. It’s likely one of the last offseasons where he can expect significant improvement.
What the Jazz can be going forward depends on what improvements Mitchell can make. The Jazz have a long and interesting summer on deck. There will be multiple decisions that will be defined as significant and difficult. And the Western Conference landscape is as treacherous as ever.
Mitchell defines the Jazz now and going forward, on and off the court. It’s why the Jazz are hoping he shakes his relatively subpar season — for his standards — and comes back strong in October.
