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The Utah Jazz are reported to be devoting themselves to building around current star Donovan Mitchell. According to The Athletic's Tony Jones, who covers the Jazz, sources have told him that Utah plans to keep Mitchell for the long term.
Utah lost to the Dallas Mavericks 98-96 in Game 6 on Thursday to be eliminated from their hard-fought, first-round series against Luka Doncic and the Mavs. In the aftermath, the Jazz are rumored to be speculating on starting to focus a build around one specific player on their roster in particular.
Utah Jazz rumored to commit to building around Donovan Mitchell
About Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell, The Athletic's Tony Jones reported:
“He should be considered the player most likely to remain with Utah through the offseason.”
Mitchell finished Game 6 with 23 points, eight rebounds and nine assists while trying to keep the Utah Jazz alive in the postseason. Rudy Gobert had 10 points and 12 rebounds in 36 minutes.
Gobert, Utah's defensive headliner, failed to show up on the back end, where he, at least, could have made up for his lackluster point production in the series. The Stifle Tower finished the six-game series with three assists, one steal, six blocks and eight turnovers. His plus/minus was minus-23.
Mitchell averaged 25.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game in the series. Mitchell played his role as well as he could, but his teammates failed to put in their contributions. Donovan was admittedly shy on defensive stats after the series closed out as well, but his pressure and aggression were seen across the series in any case.
As a result of his tenacity on the floor, it makes sense for Utah to focus its attention on bringing players that complement Mitchell. Far too often in the season, and even in this series, Mitchell struggled for help in situations that he should not have needed to.
The Jazz need another player, if not a couple, who can help create space for shot selection and play-making. Furthermore, they need a prominent defensive presence whom Mitchell can faithfully rely on when things are in favor of his opponents. The Jazz need fresh players who are hungry on and off the ball.
Although teams will still find worth in Gobert, he is not the right fit for Utah at the moment.
Mitchell has not stopped delivering for Utah since he began his career in 2017. After being selected by the Denver Nuggets with the 13th pick in the 2017 draft, Mitchell was traded on draft night to the Jazz. During his rookie season, Mitchell was named to the All-Rookie first team and won the 2018 Slam Dunk Contest. Mitchell has since become a three-time All-Star.
During his five seasons with Utah, he has averaged 23.9 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.5 apg and 1.3 steals per game across 345 appearances.
Mitchell has proven to be an aggressive and reliable force on both ends but simply cannot do it alone. Gobert was supposed to be the help he needs, but it looks like the team may be moving on from their structural efforts around the pair. They are likley to next focus more specifically on Mitchell himself.
