Donovan Mitchell - where's the hype?

[cksdayoff]

Kobblehead brought him up in the draft thread over at the Sixers board and I'm completely intrigued by this guy. He doesn't get talked about much by a lot of draft guys, as well as fans. Sophomore guard who has really good handles and is explosive in every facet of the game.

- From what I've been reading and seeing (through highlight clips) the guy's tenacity on defense reminds me of TJ McConnell, which with his athleticism and length (the guy is 6'3 and his wingspan LOOKS to be 6'6" or more) makes him a potential elite defensive type at the guard spot in the NBA

- His shooting percentages are on par with Russell Westbrooks in his two seasons at UCLA. BUT Mitchell in his last 14 games has taken 97 attempts from 3s and has made 42 of them, which is roughly 43 percent. The guy has a good looking jumper and he gets so much lift on his shot when he's taking contested J's. Next level coaching can turn him into a good shooter, IMO.

- His dribble drive penetration seems legit, guy has quick first step and can get to the rim easy, and he definitely has natural ability to finish in every way shape or form around the basket, the guy looks like a natural finisher around the rim, and it helps that he's an explosive athlete.

- The guy has 3 gears, and knows when to put on the jets.

Just wanted to know your thoughts on this kid. He's the perfect secondary ball handler for a team like the Sixers, potential elite D, who can attack the basket and shoot open 3's and would be killer in the transition game. I really really like this kid's shooting form, and I bet a team like the Spurs are probably keeping tabs on him because his shot looks like it only needs some minor adjustments and they have a god level shooting coach in Chip Engellend who can take out any flaws he has in his mechanics.

[doordoor123]

I think if there's a sleeper in this draft, he's it. I have no idea where he's going to go in th draft, but he does everything well. He can play off ball, handle a little, has complicated moves to get around defenders, plays off ball, has a beautiful arc to his shot, defends, has a soft touch, is a good passer, finishes with contact, can dunk and I think his speed is sneakily underrated. He doesn't have a great first step, but he's a tricky player to stay in front of because he's so comfortable around the 3 point line. He seems to be quicker on fast breaks than in the lane. I don't think he has PG speed, but he's pretty quick. He's a back up handler or starting SG. Would be amazing for a team like Houston.

[RipCity71252]

I like him, but I think you're overrating his athleticism. He really struggles to finish in traffic-- not a lot of explosion off one foot-- and for a guy his size, that's pretty important to note. He's a lot like Marcus Smart in this area. Good two footed leaper so he'll sky for rebounds or go up for a nasty tip dunk from time to time but struggles around the rim otherwise.

I do like his chances to be more efficient than Smart has been so far though. Like you said, his mechanics are sound and he gets it off quick and although he struggles to shoot off the dribble, he seems pretty balanced and confident getting into his pull up game that I think it's easy to envision some improvement from him here.

Defensively he looks like he should have some versatility too once his wide frame fills out--he should be able to add 15lbs to it easy--but I think he measures out a little smaller than Smart. My guess is he's 6' 2.5" / 6' 6.5" / 8' 2" but it'll be interesting to see.

[cksdayoff]

I like him, but I think you're overrating his athleticism. He really struggles to finish in traffic-- not a lot of explosion off one foot-- and for a guy his size, that's pretty important to note.

Ah, haven't caught any louisville games this year so i just went off his highlight clips. he seemed pretty crafty around the rim and had some nice touch as well

Defensively he looks like he should have some versatility too once his wide frame fills out--he should be able to add 15lbs to it easy--but I think he measures out a little smaller than Smart. My guess is he's 6' 2.5" / 6' 6.5" / 8' 2" but it'll be interesting to see.

Didn't realize Smart has a 6'9" wingspan. That's crazy

He doesn't have a great first step, but he's a tricky player to stay in front of because he's so comfortable around the 3 point line. He seems to be quicker on fast breaks than in the lane. I don't think he has PG speed, but he's pretty quick. He's a back up handler or starting SG. Would be amazing for a team like Houston.

Do you think his handles are good enough to get to wherever he wants to go on the floor?

[reanimator]

compare him to past cbb players norman powell [ucla] and nick johnson [arizona] please

[doordoor123]

I like him, but I think you're overrating his athleticism. He really struggles to finish in traffic-- not a lot of explosion off one foot-- and for a guy his size, that's pretty important to note.

Ah, haven't caught any louisville games this year so i just went off his highlight clips. he seemed pretty crafty around the rim and had some nice touch as well

Defensively he looks like he should have some versatility too once his wide frame fills out--he should be able to add 15lbs to it easy--but I think he measures out a little smaller than Smart. My guess is he's 6' 2.5" / 6' 6.5" / 8' 2" but it'll be interesting to see.

Didn't realize Smart has a 6'9" wingspan. That's crazy

He doesn't have a great first step, but he's a tricky player to stay in front of because he's so comfortable around the 3 point line. He seems to be quicker on fast breaks than in the lane. I don't think he has PG speed, but he's pretty quick. He's a back up handler or starting SG. Would be amazing for a team like Houston.

Do you think his handles are good enough to get to wherever he wants to go on the floor?

He's not a PG, so no. He's not quick enough and his handle isn't strong enough. He should always be on the perimeter and he's a slasher.

[doordoor123]

I like him, but I think you're overrating his athleticism. He really struggles to finish in traffic-- not a lot of explosion off one foot-- and for a guy his size, that's pretty important to note. He's a lot like Marcus Smart in this area. Good two footed leaper so he'll sky for rebounds or go up for a nasty tip dunk from time to time but struggles around the rim otherwise.

I do like his chances to be more efficient than Smart has been so far though. Like you said, his mechanics are sound and he gets it off quick and although he struggles to shoot off the dribble, he seems pretty balanced and confident getting into his pull up game that I think it's easy to envision some improvement from him here.

Defensively he looks like he should have some versatility too once his wide frame fills out--he should be able to add 15lbs to it easy--but I think he measures out a little smaller than Smart. My guess is he's 6' 2.5" / 6' 6.5" / 8' 2" but it'll be interesting to see.

Yeah, I've wanted to compare him to Smart, but Smart is so unique, it's a really rough comparison. I think his game will slow down and round out at the next level. He needs a floater though. I still really like his soft touch and think he could end up being a good finisher/better finisher than Smart. One of Smarts biggest issues is his lack on control when attacking the basket. Mitchell is slower and he seems like he's always in control.

Athletically he's a little odd of a prospect and it makes it hard to project him.

[jrob23]

He's seems like a smooth SG at the college level but I don't see him being quite athletic enough nor does he have great size or length to be much at the next level. He might get drafted in the 2nd round, who knows?

[jonjames]

Donovan Mitchell is quite underrated the first comparison that popped to my head was normal powell. If powell can make a niche for himself in the league mitchell certainly can.


Does anyone else here besides me like VJ King the freshman swingman? forgot that he was once a top 10 class of 2016 recruit.

[No-Man]

compare him to past cbb players norman powell [ucla] and nick johnson [arizona] please

He is more like Gary Harris to me

[reanimator]

compare him to past cbb players norman powell [ucla] and nick johnson [arizona] please

He is more like Gary Harris to me

If he has that kind of polish off-ball coming off screens and defensive chops then I'm all in.

[No-Man]

compare him to past cbb players norman powell [ucla] and nick johnson [arizona] please

He is more like Gary Harris to me

If he has that kind of polish off-ball coming off screens and defensive chops then I'm all in.

not quite, but def more like that than Powell, esp off-ball, he is a good catch&shooter.
defensively he is real good, Harris is quicker or feels quicker, but Mitchell has that same intensity.
not sure if he is quite as good as Gary, but still, if he's close I think there's value with him in the late lotto-top20 for sure.
I think he can playmake a bit better and is probably worse on cuts, or less diverse on his off-ball offense other than shooting, but that probably doesnt end up mattering as much.

[BoyzNTheHood]

Donovan Mitchell is quite underrated the first comparison that popped to my head was normal powell. If powell can make a niche for himself in the league mitchell certainly can.


Does anyone else here besides me like VJ King the freshman swingman? forgot that he was once a top 10 class of 2016 recruit.

A lot of Powell's success is based on his wingspan. IIRC it's over 6'10" which is ridiculous for a guy his size. It helps a lot when playing those passing lanes for fast break plays. However, just like Mitchell Powell has trouble finishing.

[jonjames]

^^I seriously thought his measurements were a typo..bc he didn't look that long (pause) to me watching him play..6'11 wingspan at 6'4 is plain freakish.

[GimmeDat]

Reminds me of E'twaun Moore.

[E-Balla]

I have Mitchell 13th on my draft board on the same tier as Isaac. He's not overly quick and he struggles finishing in traffic but his jumper is good, his defensive intensity is great, and he can handle the ball well for a 2. His negatives aren't that bad and he's guaranteed to be an impact player imo.

[RipCity71252]

Not locked in defensively today, but the jumper looks great again vs. Syracuse, including a nice pull up j in transition. Still don't like his on ball finishing, but he should have no problem getting in the lane and displays good vision when gets there. Pair that with the nice tools to be a 1/2 defender plus late clock switch guard who can do some secondary playmaking and hit spot 3's at an above average clip...your looking at a pretty valuable next level skillset.

He and Motley are really the two guys I'm eyeing with Portland's late firsts. Just not sure even one of them make it that far.

[cksdayoff]

His 3 point stroke is hot today, and he just destroyed the rim on a sports center top 10 play type of alleyoop dunk

He could do so much more as a lead guard imo. But Quentin Snider needs the ball lol. He is the perfect secondary ball handler for the Sixers. He'll get so many nice looks at the basket with Simmons and Embiid.

Embiid - Simmons - RoCo - ???? - Mitchell...that's an elite defensive Sixer squad

[cksdayoff]

51 made 3s out of 116 attempts in the past 16 games, which is roughly 44%

Watch on YouTube

[SV1113]

he reminds me of Avery Bradley