“He was ready to go tonight,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said of Mitchell, who hit 14 of 24 shots with four 3-pointers and added another wow!-inducing dunk to his highlight reel.
SALT LAKE CITY — At one point in Friday night’s matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers, Donovan Mitchell’s momentum carried him up a few rows into the stands behind the Utah Jazz basket.
Considering how the made-for-SportsCenter highlight machine played in this ESPN-televised game — not to mention his dramatically improved play of late — it’s almost surprising Jazz fans didn’t lift Mitchell up and pass him around the appreciative and hyped-up crowd.
The second-year star carried the injury-plagued Jazz to a rousing 113-95 win over the much-improved Lakers with 33 points, nine assists, two blocked shots and one rim-crushing dunk that JaVale McGee would prefer to never think of again.
On a night when the Jazz needed an extra boost because of the absence of their top three point guards, Jazz coach Quin Snyder loved how Mitchell attacked, attacked and then attacked some more to keep the Lakers on their heels.
“He was ready to go tonight,” Snyder said of Mitchell, who hit 14 of 24 shots with four 3-pointers.
Mitchell wasn’t the only Jazz player who played like he’d put in extra preparation for the team that stands between an on-the-rise Utah team and a playoff spot.
Royce O’Neale got the Jazz off to a great start, hitting two quick 3s, and finished with 17 points while getting extended minutes to fill a gap left by injuries to point guards Ricky Rubio, Dante Exum and Raul Neto.
O’Neale finished with 17 points, going 5 for 12 from beyond the arc, while also hauling in seven rebounds with two steals.
