Donovan Mitchell has widely been expected to stay with the Utah Jazz after Rudy Gobert was moved on, with the expectation that the franchise might try a quick rebuild around the guard. There have reportedly been offers for him, notably from the Miami Heat, but the Jazz management has supposedly felt that those offers aren’t good enough and that teams are trying to get him for cheap.
Mitchell is one of the best players in the league. While there may be some deficiencies in his game, he can score in bunches with the best of them. Any team getting him will need to shell out a king’s ransom, especially considering the haul Utah got from the deal for Rudy Gobert.
And now the man who legendarily called that Utah might be doing something right before they traded for Gobert has spoken again. Brian Windhorst, who turned himself into a bit of a cult hero in NBA circles with his brilliant ESPN monologue, has now provided an update on Mitchell’s future too.
NBA executives believe Donovan Mitchell will be available for trade “at some point,” per @WindhorstESPN pic.twitter.com/HLqcGOtnxt
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 11, 2022
“NBA executives believe Donovan Mitchell will be available for trade ‘at some point,’ per @WindhorstESPN.”
Trading Mitchell away would be a full commitment to a rebuild by Utah, which might not be the worst idea for the team considering where they currently find themselves. And even if they wish to keep the All-Star guard on their team, he may not want to remain on a team that is unlikely to contend for the championship.
It remains to be seen how the Jazz chooses to go about this because this decision will have a large impact on the future of the franchise. Players like Mitchell don’t come along often, and he is still young enough for him to be a part of more teams that have a championship window. One way or another, it promises to be a situation to keep a close eye on.
