Donovan Mitchell will not demand trade from Jazz

Donovan Mitchell has no plans to force a trade from the Jazz, according to multiple reports. However, Jazz G.M. Justin Zanik could still trade the three-time All-Star guard. If not this offseason, perhaps the Jazz front office will negotiate an in-season trade with a team later in the year, and this is assuming that Mitchell wants out.

On Nov. 23, 2020, Mitchell signed a multi-year contract extension with Utah worth as much as $163 million. Last season, he earned $28,103,500 with the Jazz. For the 2022-23 season, the guard is set to make $30,351,780. His player option for the 2025-26 season is $37,096,620.

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Donovan Mitchell will stay until he wants out

Per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the 25-year-old is fine remaining in Utah. On ESPN’s Get Up, Windhorst said, “On Mitchell’s side, he’s going to stand pat. He’s not going to force any action right now.” The Jazz are aiming to build around Mitchell in the coming years, but what if the guard wants no part of this plan months from now?

On Jul. 1, the Jazz officially traded Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves for Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler and Jarred Vanderbilt. Even quite a few Timberwolves fans would argue that G.M. Scott Layden overspent for Gobert in this trade.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reporting this morning that Donovan Mitchell plans to “stand pat” in Utah and is “not gonna force any action right now”
pic.twitter.com/AponcFb4ay

— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) July 7, 2022

Furthermore, the team traded Royce O’Neale to the Nets back in June for a 2023 first-round draft pick. The Jazz have a lot of young talent on their roster right now. Therefore, if they ever had to trade Mitchell, it might just be the type of change this organization needs. The Jazz have not made it beyond the second round of the playoffs since 2007.

Mitchell met expectations in the 2021-22 NBA season

In the 2021-22 NBA season, Donovan Mitchell averaged 25.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 steals per game in 67 total games played. Plus, he averaged 44.8% shooting from the field and 35.5% from 3-point range. Heading into his sixth season in the league, the guard is one of the most impactful players.

Last season, he finished 10th in total points (1,733), ninth in points per game (25.9), 15th in steals (99), 11th in steals per game (1.5), 11th in made field goals (617) and seventh in made 3-point field goals (232). On Nov. 6, in the Jazz’s 118-115 loss versus the Heat, Mitchell ended his outing with 37 points and 7 assists in 37 minutes of action.

Then, in the Jazz’s 120-108 win over the Timberwolves on Dec. 31, Mitchell scored a season-high 39 points in 38 minutes played. He shot 6-for-11 from downtown. While not close to his career-high 57 points he scored against the Nuggets in 2020, the guard still had high-scoring performances in the 2021-22 season.

During the 2022 NBA Playoffs, Mitchell averaged 25.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game in the Jazz’s first-round series against the Mavericks. In Game 1, the guard ended his outing with 32 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists in his team’s 99-93 win. Other articles related to Donovan Mitchell are on the main page.