The Utah Jazz did their part to make this year’s playoffs fun, thanks in large part to the on-court exploits of rookie Donovan Mitchell, who was undeniably amazing in the first two rounds of the postseason. Unfortunately, Mitchell and the Jazz have been sent home after just five games in the Western Conference semifinals, as the Houston Rockets were simply too much for Utah too handle.
What made it worse for Mitchell was that he was not able to finish Game 5 on Tuesday, as he exited the contest in the fourth due to a foot injury. He did not return in the game, and while on the bench, he was seen receiving some kind words from teammate Ricky Rubio, who was probably telling Mitchell that he will still have plenty of opportunities in the future to get back in the playoffs and lead his team to a deeper run.
https://twitter.com/RobMahoney/status/994043581039030273
Ricky Rubio did not suit up for the entire Rockets series due to a hamstring injury he sustained in the first round against the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was definitely a big loss for the Jazz, though, his absence also helped bring out the best from Donovan Mitchell, who willingly carried the bulk of backcourt responsibility with Rubio on the sidelines.
This gesture from Rubio was also reminiscent of that talk he gave to former teammate Alexey Shved coming off a timeout back in their Minnesota Timberwolves days.
Rubio have a year left on his current contract, so expect him and Mitchell to build on their remarkable 2017-18 campaign next season.
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