The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz TBT: The day I boarded the Donovan Mitchell bandwagon

By Ryan Aston

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz goes to the basket against the LA Clippers on October 24, 2017 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz goes to the basket against the LA Clippers on October 24, 2017 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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After one year in the league, people are already calling Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell a superstar. His massive potential was evident from week one.

Before the 2017 NBA Draft, Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell was unsure of his ability to make the move to the next level. 12 months later, he’s one of the Association’s most visible and invigorating stars. Last month, the NBPA christened him the Leader of the New School and, just last week, he was named this year’s Breakthrough Athlete at the ESPYs.

Crazy how things work out, huh?

That said, Mitchell’s meteoric rise isn’t really a recent phenomenon, his massive potential was evident from the jump. Even if some of the league’s Rookie of the Year voters curiously cited Ben Simmons being good “for the whole year” as their reason for taking him over Mitchell in the ROY race.

If they were really watching him, they would have known big things were on the horizon way back on October 24; in a game that saw him go 7-for-20 from the floor while the Jazz lost by 18 points to the LA Clippers.

Let’s hit the rewind button.

At the time, the Jazz were still in a post-Hayward feeling-out process and largely looking to Rodney Hood to carry the offensive load. Unfortunately, Hood missed the game with a strained calf and the Jazz couldn’t keep pace with Blake Griffin and Co. as a result.

LA’s lead ballooned to 21 points in the second half; a situation so dire that Jazz coach Quin Snyder waved the white flag and began trotting out the likes of Mitchell and Royce O’Neale — rookies in their first week of action — Alec Burks, an unknown quantity after his injuries, and third-string point-man Raul Neto.

That’s when Mitchell went to work

After missing nine of his first 10 shot attempts, the former No. 13 overall pick scored 15 points in the final carom. Along the way, he was 6-of-10 from the floor and knocked down three 3-pointers. As a result, the Jazz cut the lead the seven at 83-76.

It was his first week of regular season ball, but he nonetheless managed to put the team on his back and carry them to the point that Snyder put that white flag back in his pocket and began to re-insert his starters.

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Ultimately, the Jazz still took the L that night. However, Mitchell led the Jazz with 19 points and, for the first time, showed some of the big-game mentality that would become so prevalent as the 2017-18 campaign wore on.

That was the day I officially boarded the Donovan Mitchell bandwagon.

Four days later, he broke out, notching 22 points and three steals in a 15-point home win over the LA Lakers. A month after that, he dropped 41 in an important contest against Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans.

The rest, as they say, is history.

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