Jazz’s seventh straight win (129-118 over the Pelicans) is hit by nationally spread analysts who say the guard “has no impact on the rest of the game” beyond scoring.
Utah Jazz goalie Donovan Mitchell, 45, watches after placing the ball over New Orleans Pelicans goalie Eric Bledsoe, 5, who led the first half of a basketball game of the NBA on Thursday, January 21, 2021 in Salt Lake City. (Photo by AP / Rick Bowmer)
“I said tonight that you don’t have what it takes to get to the next level.”
That’s what TNT analyst Donovan Mitchell told Donovan Mitchell immediately after the Utah Jazz’s 129-118 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans Thursday night: a game that doesn’t he only saw the Jazz get their seventh straight win, but that meant Mitchell was arguably playing his best game of the season, getting 11 of 19 general shots and 6 of 7 from depth, totaling 36 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
That’s how a national TV showcase for Jazz became a source of controversy and motivation for the team’s star guard.
During the middle of the game, TNT’s O’Neal crew, “Charles Barkley,” “Kenny Smith” and “Ernie Johnson,” from “TNT” within the NBA, got into a discussion about whether Mitchell was any rather than a pretty good scorer on a good team, he possessed the true “superstar” ability to affect the game in different ways to score.
The Hall of Fame Center itself informed Mitchell of O’Neal’s criticism and then asked for an answer.
His one-word response, clearly annoying, but refusing to take the bait, said, “Go.”
But Mitchell would have much more to say to local media later.
“Right now we’re in a seven-game winning streak, we play good basketball. I don’t like to win like that and do it on what they said about me,” he noted. “You see how we played and watched, I’m happy.”
There was, in fact, a lot of joy, considering that the Jazz had just recovered from a 16-point deficit, they had just overcome the worst basketball quarter of the season when they allowed the Pelicans 43 points in the first period. . just improved to 11-4 overall.
And yet, as was happening, the TNT crew came to the consensus that Mitchell is not doing enough beyond scoring to be the main one in a championship candidate.
O’Neal opened the argument by suggesting that Mitchell “has to be a second or third choice” for a team to compete. When Smith replied, “I see that he scores at will and I see that he dominates people,” Barkley intervened, “This is not a superstar. A superstar is a guy who can win the game in several ways.
“A lot of guys are great offensive players, but a superstar is a guy who can win a game; if he’s having a bad night shooting, he can get a lot of rebounds or he can play defense, “Barkley added.” … When guys try to explain that kind of thing, it looks like old guys hate. They don’t hate old people. It’s like, “Okay, he’s a great scorer. I’ll give you that, but it has no impact on the rest of the game.”
O’Neal doubled down on this premise: “He’s a great goal scorer, I agree. But if he doesn’t score, what else can he do? ”
Mitchell’s comrades, of course, came together to defend themselves.
“I’ve been a big fan of Don’s and I’ve seen it grow over the last few seasons, even before I was here. His progress has been fantastic and I don’t know how a statement can be made about his progress at such a young age, “said Mike Conley, who finished with 20 points, six assists and three steals. “He is a boy who gets better every year. He has added things to his game. And it will continue to improve. “
“I think at the end of the day, whatever they want to call us, if we continue to win games, they will have to keep an eye on us anyway,” Gobert said. “We hope to see you until July [when the NBA Finals are scheduled to take place], and then they can call us whatever they want “.
For his part, Mitchell, of course, disagreed with the evaluation of his game by analysts, saying, “I think I’ve made some solid progress” in different areas of the score.
He noted that he enjoys the simplicity of bouncing, the fact of putting a body on an opponent, soaring into the sky and fighting to see who goes down with the ball. He added that while he knows he can still progress as a passer, he feels proud to move the ball, “being able to make the game simple, not always trying to make the hero play, the game of the house.”
Mitchell also made it clear, however, that if some critics change their views on him it is ultimately irrelevant: the Jazz have a bigger business on hand.
“I’m here to play basketball and be the best teammate and the best player I can be. [And if] they don’t like it, they don’t like it, “he said.” I don’t try to do that about me: it’s team basketball. After all, we win, we’re doing good things, we just have to keep it that way because you have Golden State. [Saturday] and we have to be prepared for that. “
JAZZ 129, PELICANS 118
Key moment • After fighting almost all the way back to the second quarter, a 21-2 run from the Jazz in the third controlled them tightly.
Big name: 3 • The Pelicans were dominant from a very early age, going from eight to eleven from 3 points in the first quarter. But they would only make three beyond the arc for the rest of the game.
Until next time • The property continues Saturday with a visit from the Golden State Warriors. Tipoff has been rescheduled from 3 a.m. to 7 p.m.