Is Donovan Mitchell the reason Ricky Rubio is so underwhelming lately? Like, Rubio saw him constantly taking and making all these tough shots and he thought “why even try I’ve been in the league for years and I can’t even come close to doing this stuff”. It wouldn’t surprise me if that was the case. I’m jealous as well of Mitchell’s ability to dunk easily at 6’3″.
It may be the case that the Rubio era of the Jazz ended before it even really begun. There was hype for Rubio before the season started, hype for his savvy passing and hype for how he’d elevate teammates to a new level. That hype is gone now, replaced by even hype-er hype for Mitchell’s insane scoring theatrics. That’s what the people want, anyway. Passing and teamwork is all well and good until some young hotshot chucker comes in and dazzles everyone.
Madison Square Garden was appropriately dazzled by Mitchell’s 17 first-half points, and then got the best of both worlds as their team won the game as he scored only 2 the rest of the way. Watching opposing players go off is great as long as it doesn’t cost the good guys the win.