The NBA Draft has recently brought some of the best quality in recent memory and this past year was no exception, with plenty of talented freshmen available within the first half of the first-round board. Among them there was Donovan Mitchell, a three-and-D specialist out of the University of Louisville and touted as one to have an immediate impact in the pro game.

For the Utah Jazz, acquiring him with their own 24th overall pick was too much to ask for, but after having him in the facility and seeing him perform, the front office had to find a way to bring him to Salt Lake City.

“We liked him, he had a good workout for us, shot the ball well, we loved him as a defender with his athleticism and his wingspan, but we didn't think we could get as high as we needed to get him,” Jazz assistant coach Johnnie Bryant told Brad Botkin of CBS Sports. “So when he started dropping and then suddenly he was there and the call for the trade came though, it was like, OK, let's go get him. In the draft, unless you have one of the top few picks, you have to get lucky. You can love a guy and think you're going to get him and then, boom, somebody else grabs him. All the stars have to line up. And for us, they did, and we got our guy.”

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The Jazz were able to swap picks with the Denver Nuggets, who selected him with the 13th overall pick on draft day. So far, that gamble has paid off, as the 6-foot-3 Mitchell leads all rookies in scoring with 19.3 points per game.

“Look, I've been wrong on guys before, we all have, but to me, Donovan was a pretty easy one to get right,” a Western Conference scout told CBS Sports. “I've been a big fan of that kid since high school. He's got the athleticism. He's got the work ethic. But he's also a really bright, high-character kid. Now, did I think he would be this good this quickly? No. But I definitely saw him as a guy who could come into the league and have immediate success.”

Mitchell has shown his stripes at both ends of the floor, quickly becoming one of the best defenders on the team and showing promise with his 3-point acumen, shooting 34.5 percent in 6.5 attempts per game.

Not many teams are willing to roll the dice, but this became a key asset after the impending, and to some inevitable departure of Gordon Hayward in the offseason. If things continue to go their way, the Jazz could be in line for their next franchise player with Mitchell.