Donovan Mitchell is one of the most clutch players in the NBA

This tweet lead me to doing some clutch stat digging. Compared to the other 2017 NBA rookies that have played in clutch time for at least 10 games, Donovan Mitchell ranks:

• 1st in clutch PPG (2.7)
• 4th in FG% (55.6%, behind Ben Simmons, Jayson Tatum and Dillon Brooks)
• 3rd in 3pt% (33.3% behind Jayson Tatum and Dillon Brooks)
• 4th in eFG% (61.1% behind Ben Simmons, Jayson Tatum and Dillon Brooks)

Some of the advanced stats in clutch time are not the most flattering for Donovan, but that should improve as he continues to learn how to handle those situations.

Another interesting stat is that out of rookies who have played minutes in the 4th quarter in more than 10 games, Donovan is 2nd in 4th quarter +/-, with a +2.8. A cool note is that Royce O’Neale is right behind him in 3rd place with +2.6. Jayson Tatum is tied for 3rd with +2.6.

While I don’t know if I can say that Donovan is the best rookie in the fourth quarter or in clutch time, I think his potential is shining through. I feel Donovan could become not only one of the best end-of-game players in his draft class, but in the entire league.

With Gobert and Favors out for tonight’s game, Ekpe Udoh will be starting for the Utah Jazz. KSL put out a video and an accompanying article on the book club he has been holding here in the Wasatch Front. Right now, they are just past chapter 8 in Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. It’s a nice reminder that we all should probably be reading more in our busy lives. For those of you who complain about the rising costs of entertainment, remember that a book from the library costs you nothing (if you return it on time, of course!). Whether you follow along reading the same title with Ekpe’s Book Club, or find another book that interests you, I encourage all of us to make some more time for reading this winter.

I found an interesting video that gives a small background of a few rookies’ high school experience. Of course, Donovan is in there. You might already know all of the info, but it is cool to see some of his high school footage.

If any of you didn’t get to watch the Cavs game, Donovan had an impressive outing. He had 26 points on 11 of 16 shooting, and 3 of 6 of those from 3. He didn’t have quite as many assists as he has had in some other games, but his offensive moves and reads were very impressive.

My favorite play (starting at 0:42 in the video) was when the play called for a PnR to switch Kevin Love onto a Donovan ISO, but LeBron reads that and preemptively switches onto Loves man, and ends up being the one to switch onto Donovan. With some other players, they might immediately pass out of that situation. Not Donovan. He doesn’t do anything excessive, he just zips past LeBron, and jumps off the wrong foot to throw the defender’s rhythm off, which gives him an easy layup.

Sit back and enjoy.