It felt like just yesterday Louisville basketball fans were debating whether or not Donovan Mitchell should come back to college or go to the NBA. We obviously know how that played out and we’ve been fortunate to see a former Card rise to NBA stardom. Now in his fifth season, fresh off of a massive max extension Mitchell is trending towards becoming a legitimate contender for the NBA’s MVP award.
In case you’ve been living under a rock or simply don’t keep up with the NBA, let me fill you in.
Guiding the hottest team in the league
With less than a month and a half remaining in the 2020-21 season, the Jazz currently are the league’s best team at 31-11 overall. Behind incredible defense and three-point shooting, three NBA All-Stars, and a strong supporting cast, the Jazz have yet to show anyone anything other than winning basketball.
The last time you checked in, the Jazz might have been losing the first-round series or sneaking their way into the playoffs. I would understand any skepticism. However, this has been a completely different team this year thanks to the re-emergence of Mike Conley and the MVP-caliber play of Donovan Mitchell.
That’s right, MVP caliber play.
It took Mitchell a bit to get going earlier this season but since turning it on the Jazz have been elite. Since February 1st, Mitchell has emerged as a top 10 scorer (averaging 27.5 points per game), legitimate three-point shooter (nearly 37%), and a guy who can do more than just score (6 assists per game and top 10 in usage rate), in terms of impact on winning.
In his fourth season, Mitchell is averaging career highs in points (25.4), rebounds (4.6), assists (5.5), effective field goal percentage, and three-point shooting percentage. As a team the Jazz are currently the NBA’s best team in a number of key statistics, including three-pointers made, three-pointers defended. They are also top 10 in most defensive categories and rank as the league’s top passing team.
The Jazz are a great team entering the final leg of the season, and it would be naive to look at that and not point at Mitchell as where it all begins. There isn’t another player on the Utah roster who strikes fear and draws more attention than Mitchell.
The Jazz currently have six players averaging double-digits, but none are putting up the numbers across the board that Mitchell is. In fact, if you look at their rise this season you can see a direct correlation between Mitchell’s success and the success of his team.
The bottom line is the Jazz go as Mitchell goes. There are pieces in place that help make Donovan Mitchell a better player, but Utah can attibute a good chunk of its success to its two-time All-Star.
Assessing the competition
At this point in the season, the MVP race is much more wide open than it was a month ago. Since both Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers and LeBron James of the Lakers have gone down with injuries, there is no prohibitive favorite in the MVP race.
In fact, James and Embiid are still considered front-runners +450 and +600 according to Odds Shark. Denver’s Nikola Jokic has become the betting favorite with Giannis Antetokoumpo, Damian Lillard, James Harden, Luka Doncic, Steph Curry, Kawhi Leonard, and Kevin Durant filling out the top 10.
Even at 31-11, there is not a significant buzz around Utah. As a small-market team with limited success in the playoff success in recent years, it makes sense that people would write them off. Especially when you look at Harden’s assimilation in Brooklyn, Jokic’s gaudy numbers, clutchness of Lillard, and others, it’s hard to begin including Mitchell. He may not carry the star power or even statistics of those guys, but none have won at the level of Mitchell.
It’s been an odd season for Mitchell. Obviously, we know about the entire COVID situation last season between him and Gobert. Then there was the early playoff exit despite Mitchell playing at an extremely high level. Then came the question of whether he should sign an extension or look to move on and play in a bigger market.
As the season began, there was a controversy between Mitchell and Shaquille O’Neal. Then, there were some indirect slights from Lebron James during the All-Star draft. All season there’s just been a weird mojo. Despite this, Mitchell is playing the best basketball of his career.
The argument that the MVP award should go to the best player on the best team isn’t one I’m trying to make. But the Jazz would be a middle-tier to lottery-type team without Donovan Mitchell. That, in essence, is what puts the Valuable, in the “Most Valuable Player,” and it is why Mitchell should be considered more seriously going forward.
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