4. Evaluating Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell against the Thunder
Stats for Donovan Mitchell:
- 28 minutes
- 16 points
- 6-for-17 from the field, 3-for-10 from three, 1-for-1 from the foul line
- Three rebounds
- Four assists
- Two steals
- One block
- One turnover
- Two fouls
Against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Donovan Mitchell wasn’t wholly crisp. No, he looked far from it, especially early. Heck, the 25-year-old franchise weapon didn’t find the bottom of the net on any type of shot attempt until midway through the second quarter.
However, early in the game, Mitchell’s attack-mode style — without being a turnover machine, mind you — helped put the Oklahoma City Thunder on their heels. And the 6-foot-1, 215-pound guard’s green-light energy perhaps helped to set the tone for the other Utah Jazz players.
Don with the & 1 (and the assist right after) 🕷#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/IajuoqvdjY
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) October 21, 2021
After all, the group totaled 47 attempts beyond the arc, surpassing the 2020-21 team’s record-setting 43.0 attempts from downtown per game. Unfortunately, they drained only 14 of them, equating to 29.8 percent, never fully catching fire after watching Mitchell’s frigid shooting early.
It’s worth noting, though, that a few of Mitchell’s stepback moves created an ungodly amount of space between himself and his defender, even more so — or so it seemed — than in years past. On that note, he appeared to be experimenting with a few new moves while also quickening his trigger from the deep 3-point territory.
Now, all the two-time All-Star needs to see is the shot attempts fall a bit more often. His resume suggests there’s no need to worry about that.
Player grade: 88 (B+)