Utah Jazz: Donovan Mitchell to play Wednesday vs. Nets

Utah Jazz leading scorer Donovan Mitchell will be back in action for Wednesday’s road contest against the Brooklyn Nets.

If you’re a Utah Jazz fan, you’re probably starving for some good news. Considering that the team is 9-12, just got blown out at home by a shorthanded Indiana Pacers team and has overall dramatically under-achieved this year, there’s been an obvious shortage of positivity up to this point.

Well, if you’re feeling blue, then I have just the dose of reassuring information you might be looking for. After leaving early in the game against the Los Angeles Lakers then sitting out against both the Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers with a rib contusion, Jazz leading scorer Donovan Mitchell is set to make his return on Wednesday against the Brooklyn Nets.

The timing of this return couldn’t be better as the Jazz severely missed his scoring and energy against Indiana. After falling to three games below .500, the Jazz are teetering on the edge of quickly losing control of this season if things don’t turn around quickly. Therefore, with a very winnable game in Brooklyn ahead, having Donovan back to provide some extra luster to the struggling team will be vital.

Donovan Mitchell isn’t off to the greatest start this season in terms of efficiency. He’s averaged just 41.8 percent shooting from the field and an appalling 29.2 percent from deep on a whopping 6.6 attempts per game. Nevertheless, he’s leading his Jazz team in scoring with 20.6 points per game which is just a touch better than the 20.5 per game he averaged a season ago.

Not only that but despite some questions about Donovan’s shot selection and decision making in this early part of the season, he’s still one of the only Jazzmen capable of creating his own shot and producing instant offense. He can be streaky, but when he gets in a groove, he’s nigh unstoppable. There’s simply no denying that the Jazz needed his production desperately in their losses to both Los Angeles and Indiana.

In order for the Jazz to turn this season around, several things have to change, but one of those is undoubtedly that Mitchell has to be more efficient and get back to his overwhelmingly dominant self. If he can reach the expectations placed on him in his second year in the not-too-distant future, it will help propel this Jazz team to undiscovered heights this season.

He’s had to carry the Jazz on his shoulders at times, which is a big ask for such a young player. However, as he improves and remains as aggressive as Quin Snyder needs him to be, it will also elevate the rest of his teammates to play with energy and intensity.

Although Mitchell didn’t suit up for the blowout loss to the Pacers, look for him to be as heated and anxious for a bounce-back as anyone. He’s a winner through and through and clearly hates how games have been turning out lately. As such, I expect him to get back on track in a big way when Utah visits the Nets on Wednesday night in the first contest of a three-game road trip. It should be a big game for him personally, resulting in a prolific performance by his team.

The Jazz and Nets tip-off at 5:30 PM MT in Brooklyn. After this game, the Jazz will go on to visit the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat before finally returning home for a two-game home stand against the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets.