Selected ninth overall in the 2021 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, guard Davion Mitchell is slowly making his mark on the floor this early in the season. He's been busy showing off the asset that made him a lottery pick, which is his tenacious defense that has helped hush some of the NBA's biggest guns in the last two Kings games. But he's certainly going to have his hands full with his next assignment: Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors.
Via The Athletic's Anthony Slater and Sam Amick:
Mitchell, you can be sure, is spending his Saturday studying Curry and Jordan Poole, another perimeter threat who he will likely guard to open the second and fourth quarters, when Curry sits. Before the Jazz game, he asked Walton, who coached Clarkson in Los Angeles, about Clarkson’s tendencies. The league’s best defenders are obsessed with their craft.
Mitchell could be in for a long night shadowing Curry. No one has really checked the Warriors superstar in all his years in the NBA. Elite defenders can slow him down, but they can only do so much in trying to contain the two-time league MVP. As for Mitchell, at least he's got some momentum going for him ahead of the challenge against the Warriors.
The Kings rookie held Portland Blazers guard Damian Lillard to only 1 of 7 shooting when he was the closest defender in Sacramento's first game of the season. Then Mitchell limited Donovan Mitchell to just 2 of 6 shooting from the field under the same circumstances, albeit in a loss to the Utah Jazz. Still, the 23-year-old Mitchell is ready for every challenge heading his way.
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