After establishing himself as the face of Utah Jazz basketball over the past three seasons, Donovan Mitchell is reportedly set to be paid like their franchise player.
Per Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes, Mitchell and the Jazz will finalize a five-year max extension at the start of free agency.
Mitchell told Haynes he initially had concerns about playing on the NBA campus for the season restart—specifically regarding what an injury might mean for a potential contract:
“Once my teammates told me they wanted to play, then I was all in. I couldn’t make it all about myself. There are younger guys who aren’t established in this league and needed this time to show their value. It would have been selfish of me to stand in the way of that. I couldn’t let my contract get in the way of the bigger picture. I had to rely on God. If I got hurt, it was God’s will. But I put my trust in Him and didn’t worry about potentially getting injured. That allowed me to go out there and play. My faith was in God.”
Even though the NBA has yet to set the salary cap for next season—it’s expected to drop from the league’s initial $115 million projection, per Marc Berman of the New York Post—Haynes noted the value for a five-year max deal this offseason will be around $170 million.
Because of the league’s economic uncertainty stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski has reported free agency will likely be pushed back from Oct. 18.
Mitchell was selected No. 13 overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 2017 NBA draft, but the Nuggets sent him to Utah for Trey Lyles and the No. 24 selection on draft night.
A first-time All-Star this season, Mitchell has averaged 22.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 225 career games. The Louisville alum shot a career-high 36.6 percent from three-point range in 2019-20.
Utah’s season ended Tuesday night with an 80-78 loss to the Nuggets in Game 7 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series.
Courtesy: Bleacher Report
