Looking into the crystal ball: Utah Jazz predictions for 2019-20
By Dean Hasan
4. Donovan Mitchell averages 25+ points per game
On the surface, this doesn’t seem to be loftiest of goals given that Donovan Mitchell put up 23.8 points per game in the 2018-19 season. With the additions of Mike Conley and Bojan Bogdanovic however, Mitchell may lose some looks; yet if the Jazz offense works as planned, his scoring output could potentially increase.
Between Conley, Bogdanovic and Joe Ingles, Utah’s floor spacing is poised to be elite, providing Mitchell with more space to operate inside the arc. Furthermore, with a veteran floor general like Conley at the helm, Mitchell should find himself with more open looks.
He shot 40.1 percent on catch-and-shoot 3-pointers last year and with more of those attempts, his point totals should increase.
Besides additional scoring from deep, Mitchell, who ranked fifth among starting guards in drives per game, should see a bump in his interior scoring. While he converted just 45.4 percent of his field goal attempts on drives to the hoop (38th among starting guards), with the team’s improved spacing, he’ll have more room to operate and his efficiency should see a bump.
Previously, the duo of Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert at the 4 and 5 slots led to an extremely crowded paint, even more so when Mitchell took the ball inside. This season, with a four-out offensive scheme, the middle of the floor is wide open.
If the Jazz’s last preseason game against the New Orleans Pelicans was any indication of how they’ll look offensively, Gobert should be a significant lob threat all game off the pick and roll, which will further stretch the defense when Mitchell penetrates.