Donovan Mitchell could always generate assists. When you are as dynamic off the dribble as he is and can bend a defense as he can, assists come naturally. All it takes is hitting the open guy.
But that didn’t make Mitchell a point guard.
The leap that he’s made at the position, and the leap that probably changes the Utah Jazz fundamentally in coming years, is Mitchell’s improvement at the cerebral parts of playing that spot. He’s recognizing coverages better than he’s ever had. He’s making much better reads out of the pick-and-roll. He’s become a more willing passer, recognizing that setting up teammates only serves to make him more dangerous from a scoring standpoint. He is recognizing mismatches among his teammates better than he’s ever had.
Advertisement
He’s not just playing point guard. He’s controlling games.
“It’s been fun to coach him and watch his progression,” Utah coach Quin Snyder said. “His ability to read the game is improving all the time. The conversations that we have before and during games. The things he’s doing on the floor. It’s fun to see how he’s coming along.”
In Sunday night’s 108-93 win over the New York Knicks, Mitchell’s mastery at Madison Square Garden was jaw-dropping at times. He scored a game-high 36 points and did it on 11-of-21 shooting from the field. He grabbed eight rebounds, handed out six assists and registered a 2-to-1 assist to turnover ratio. He made several big shots to stop the Knicks when they were making runs in the second half. He was the best player on the floor, by leaps and bounds.
Mitchell has been terrific over the past five weeks, so Sunday night doesn’t serve as a one-off. In his past 18 games, Mitchell is scoring nearly 27 points a game. He’s averaging six assists, almost five rebounds and shooting 41 percent from 3-point range. Most importantly, he’s at almost a plus-150 in those games.
In previous seasons, Mitchell has scored a lot but has had issues carrying lineups. The lineups with the positive ratings almost always belonged to Rudy Gobert. Now, in addition to the gaudy numbers, Mitchell’s the one carrying lineups. His insertion into games is what’s been restoring order of late for the Jazz.
“I think the biggest improvement for me has been just trying to make things easy,” Mitchell said. “Not only for myself but for my teammates. Creating advantages for my teammates. Finding teammates who have the biggest advantages. Reading the flow of the game. All of those things are important.”
This is what Mitchell has lacked over previous seasons. What’s obvious is that Mike Conley’s ability to be a floor general and manage games is having a positive effect on Mitchell. What has made Conley such a good player well into his 30s has been the basketball IQ and his ability to run an offense. When the Jazz traded for Conley, they hoped Mitchell would be a sponge. It’s one of the reasons Mitchell’s locker has always been next to Conley’s.
Advertisement
Now, the Jazz appear to have the best of both worlds with their star player: the physical ability at 25 years old to dominate games with the mindset to control those games possession by possession. That last part isn’t easy. There are plenty of players who can score. Not many can consistently control what happens in a game at every step. But Mitchell is making improvements in that aspect, which makes the Jazz a different team.
On Sunday night, Snyder went with Mitchell and Gobert. He started Juancho Hernangomez, Royce O’Neale and Nickeil Alexander-Walker around those two. So, the Jazz’s starting lineup consisted of Mitchell, three wings who all defend at a high level and Gobert. With no Conley, who sat on the first night of a back-to-back, and no Bojan Bogdanovic, it gave Snyder the opportunity to go with a lineup that should serve as a blueprint around Mitchell in the future.
“I liked it,” Gobert said. “Those guys have been playing well defensively and hustling and making plays. It was a different look. It made us a bigger team on the perimeter. It was definitely a fun lineup to play with.”
The Jazz were able to play one of their best games defensively Sunday around Mitchell. Because Mitchell was so dynamic offensively, and because the wings could all shoot, the Jazz were a two-way team at Madison Square Garden. Whenever the offseason comes for the Jazz, it’s probably time for Mitchell to move to the point guard spot exclusively. He’s clearly ready, and he’s getting to the point where it’s just not wise not to have the ball in his hands on every possession, whether he shoots it or not.
Sunday’s rotation looks like a structural alignment around him. Surround him with long and athletic wings who defend and can make shots. Have a secondary ballhandler — like Jordan Clarkson, who scored 23 points Sunday night off the bench — who can eat possessions and play with bench units. And then, have your star big man in the paint, being an anchor defensively and a vertical-lob threat on the offensive end.
Advertisement
The Houston Rockets did this when they had James Harden. Utah probably shouldn’t go to that extreme because that extreme essentially tired out Harden by the end of every season. But wing play around dynamic guards wins in this league. Mitchell’s position was probably always going to end up at the point. As a shooting guard, he’s small, even with his 6-foot-10 wingspan. But, as a point guard, he’s got terrific size. There aren’t many in the league at that position who can match his length, athleticism and build. It was simply a matter of how long it would take him to master the spot.
Utah is 15-5 in its past 20 games. But this trip will be as challenging as any stretch the Jazz have faced all season. At the same time, Mitchell’s ability to raise his game, and Utah’s ability to figure out issues on the fly has got to be encouraging to a fan base hoping for a deep playoff run.
(Photo: Sarah Stier / Getty Images)