The kid’s in town

Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell is in town on a major Adidas promotional tour that will coincide with the announcement of three Filipino recruits joining the fold of the brand with the three stripes. There is speculation that Mitchell will show up at the Manila Clasico PBA game between Barangay Ginebra and Magnolia at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight.

It’s probably only in the Philippines where amateur players may be signed up to endorsement contracts, making them de facto pros. But since there are no restrictions, the sky’s the limit to offer even promising high school kids contracts to boggle the imagination. The word is Adidas will announce the signing of three Gilas amateur standouts, one of whom is in high school, during Mitchell’s visit. How timely that Mitchell is also like a new kid on the block.

Mitchell, 21, was Utah’s first round pick and 13th overall in the NBA draft last year. Chosen ahead of Mitchell were Markelle Fultz of Philadelphia, Lonzo Ball of the Los Angeles Lakers, Jayson Tatum of Boston and two foreigners. But as the season unfolded, it became clear that Mitchell could’ve or should’ve been the first overall pick.

Mitchell averaged 20.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 33.4 minutes in 79 games, including 71 starts, for the Jazz this past season. He led Utah up to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. Mitchell, a five-time Western Conference Rookie of the Month awardee, became the first rookie to capture the Slam Dunk title since Zach Lavine in 2015. During the season, Mitchell broke all sorts of records. He’s the first Utah rookie to score at least 40 points in a game and the first since Blake Griffin in 2011 to accomplish the feat. Mitchell also became the first rookie since Allen Iverson in 1996-97 to hit a pair of 40-pointers. He finished the campaign with the most triple connections ever by a freshman.

In the playoffs, Mitchell was just as phenomenal. He powered Utah to a 4-2 win over Oklahoma City in the first round without the homecourt advantage. Mitchell erupted for 33 points in Utah’s 113-96 win in Game 4 then capped the series with 38 points in the Jazz’ 96-91 clincher in Game 6. The series was a virtual shootout between Mitchell and Russell Westbrook. In Game 6, Westbrook delivered 46 points but the Thunder couldn’t repulse the Jazz. Mitchell’s 38-point output was the highest by a rookie in a playoff series clincher since 1980. Another record he set was becoming the highest pointer in his first two playoff games ever with 55, two more than Michael Jordan.

Utah’s playoff surge was halted by Houston. With Chris Paul and James Harden in harness, the Rockets crushed the Jazz, 4-1. In the Game 5 clincher, Paul had 41 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists while Mitchell finished with 24 points, four rebounds and nine assists as Houston won, 112-102. Curiously, two of Mitchell’s adversaries in the playoffs were known to have encouraged him to turn pro after two years with the University of Louisville varsity – Paul and OKC’s Paul George. Another influencer was LeBron James who once called Mitchell the “young king.”

Mitchell is a certified Jordan disciple. He wears No. 45 because that’s what Jordan wore in his short-lived baseball career, in high school up to third year and for 22 games in the NBA. His sister is named Jordan. Like Jordan, Mitchell is both a basketball and baseball fan. Mitchell’s father Donovan, Sr. was a minor league baseball player and used to work with the New York Mets as a director of player relations. His mother Nicole is a teacher. Mitchell is fortunate that he has learned from two of the top coaches in the game, Rick Pitino at Lousville and Quinn Snyder at Utah.

At the Slam Dunk contest this year, Mitchell was a late replacement for injured Aaron Gordon and went all the way to the throne. He paid tribute to two of his favorite dunkers Darrell Griffith and Vince Carter by wearing their jerseys during the competition. With the Jazz, Mitchell was surrounded by foreign players including Ricky Rubio of Spain, Joe Ingles and Dante Exum of Australia, Rudy Gobert of France, Jonas Jerebko of Sweden, Raul Neto of Brazil and Thabo Sefolosha of Switzerland so he was able to develop an all-around game with both American and international influence.

Mitchell is in a two-way race for NBA Rookie of the Year honors with Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons of Australia. Simmons, 21, averaged 15.8 points this past season and led the 76ers to the second round of the playoffs before they were bundled out by the Celtics, 4-1. The battle will be settled during the NBA Awards Night in New York City on June 26.