We've all been mesmerized by Utah Jazz rookie Donovan Mitchell. He is averaging 18.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists — very impressive for someone who is new in the league.
Nobody expected him to be this good. That's why he was drafted No. 13 by the Denver Nuggets and ended up being traded to the Jazz.
It's as if nobody believed in him. In fact, according to David Aldridge of TNT, even Mitchell didn't believe in himself. He said:
“I didn't think I was going to be drafted, to be honest. I'm serious. I mean, wholeheartedly, too. I don't know. I didn't realize it, probably, until about a week and a half, two weeks before the Draft. Once I got invited to the Green Room, that's when I was like, okay, I'm first, I'm getting drafted in the first round. Because they try their best not to let guys sit in there forever.”
But if anybody believed on Mitchell, it is the Jazz.
It's been said that the Jazz saw Mitchell as a good fit in their system. But in order to get him, the team had to move up in the draft.
When the Charlotte Hornets selected Malik Monk for the No. 10 pick and the Detroit Pistons Luke Kennard for the No. 11 pick, Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey pulled the trigger and made the deal with the Nuggets.
It seems that the Jazz have done the right thing. Mitchell is now regarded as one of the best rookies in the class, along with the likes of Jayson Tatum and Kyle Kuzma.
That's a pretty good feat for a No. 13 pick who didn't believe in himself.
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