2. Donovan Mitchell
When Utah lost Gordon Hayward in free agency during the summer of 2017, many in Salt Lake City thought the following season would be a struggle. Enter Donovan Mitchell, who shocked the world with his impressive rookie campaign.
Mitchell became a focal point of the Jazz offense as the season progressed. He was arguably the reason for Utah’s late season surge to the fifth seed in the Western Conference, with a plus/minus ratio of +14.2 over the final two months of the season. He finished the regular season leading all rookies in scoring at 20.5 points per game.
He continued his dominance in the playoffs, leading all rookies with 24.4 points per game. Mitchell also had three double-doubles in his 11 playoff games, the most impressive being in Utah’s only win against the Rockets. Mitchell scored 17 points, dished out 11 assists and grabbed two steals.
The lone weakness in Mitchell’s game is his 3-point shooting. Though his 34 percent from beyond the arc is far from embarrassing, it must improve for the Jazz to be able to compete with Houston and Golden State.
All rookies are expected to improve during their sophomore season, and expectations are high for Mitchell. He’s already proven himself as a capable defender, and has shown he can rack up points. He scored 40 or more points twice during the 2017-18 season. If he can improve his 3-point shot by even a couple of percentage points, it’s possible he makes an appearance in the All-Star game next year.