Donovan Mitchell – Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz are coming off their best season since the 2009-10 season in large part thanks to Donovan Mitchell, but through his first four seasons in the league, the young guard has seemed to “bat heads” with the Jazz from time to time on various issues. First, there was the issue with Rudy Gobert and him “giving” Mitchell COVID-19, but then there was a major issue last season with Donovan Mitchell injuring his ankle.
Apparently there were disagreements between the Utah Jazz and Mitchell’s personal doctors in his recovery process/rehab process that seemed to really anger Mitchell. This caused some issues with the young guard’s readiness for the Jazz first-round playoff series against the Grizzlies and ultimately led to him having to sit out Game 1 of said series, which resulted in a Utah loss.
Everything seems “okay” now in Salt Lake City with their young star and he is under-contract through the 2025-26 season, but like Karl-Anthony Towns, he could wind up requesting a trade over the next handful of years should things not play out the way he would like with the Jazz. At 24-years-old and soon-to-be 25, Mitchell is just beginning his rise to NBA stardom, so this is definitely a secondary thought in his mind, but he has always had a soft-spot for the city of New York.
One of the biggest reasons why Donovan Mitchell has such a strong connection to New York City is because his father worked for the New York Mets for years while he was growing up. Donovan Mitchell Sr. began working for the Mets in 1999 as a minor league manager and coach and to this day, he is still involved with the Mets as their Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
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Playing in New York under the bright lights in Madison Square Garden would probably be a dream come true for Donovan Mitchell, which is why the Knicks organization could look to make some moves over the next few years ensuring that they can sustain success.
By creating a roster that can contend for a playoff spot year after year, as well as leaving the door open for a big trade, the New York Knicks could definitely keep an eye on what is transpiring in Utah and potentially make a move over the next few years to go after Donovan Mitchell.
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At this point, it seems unlikely that Mitchell has had any thoughts of leaving Utah since he is the face of the franchise there, but playing for the Knicks is definitely something that could be intriguing to him down the road, especially if New York can continue to trend upwards in the Eastern Conference.
