In any other season, Utah Jazz point guard Donovan Mitchell would be rookie of the year.
Mitchell has proven that not only is he ready to be in the NBA, he is built for it. He's competitive, he has the strength and ability, and he has the confidence necessary to be a star.
Not only that, he can also fill it up when it matters most: in the playoffs. Mitchell recently scored 33 points in a playoff game as a rookie, which broke the record set by Jazz legend Karl Malone so many years ago.
When asked recently what he thought of Mitchell breaking his rookie record for points in a single game, Malone was quite matter-of-fact about the whole thing, per Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News.
“That's not the last one he gonna probably break,” Malone said. “Records get broken. … He's probably going to break a whole lot more of them.”
Karl Malone on Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) breaking his @utahjazz rookie postseason single-game scoring record with 33 points: “He’s probably going to break a whole lot more of them.” pic.twitter.com/FhePqw3A9v
— Eric Woodyard (@E_Woodyard) April 27, 2018
When you're right, you're right. Malone is not only a legend in Utah, but one of the best players to ever play the game of basketball. While he never won championship, he certainly made his mark in the league.
But that was decades ago, and it seems that Mitchell is ready to get the torch passed to him. With the way basketball is played nowadays, many records are falling every season. It's inevitable that one set by the Jazz great would fall, and Mitchell was the one to do it.
If things continue this way for Mitchell, he could end his career as the record holder of many Jazz statistics. But he probably wants one of the championships too.
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