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Raptors should draft Donovan Mitchell

By Mustafa Noor

Mar 4, 2017; Louisville, KY, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Donovan Mitchell (45) celebrates during the second half against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at KFC Yum! Center. Louisville defeated Notre Dame 71-64. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2017; Louisville, KY, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Donovan Mitchell (45) celebrates during the second half against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at KFC Yum! Center. Louisville defeated Notre Dame 71-64. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Raptors need more wing depth and need to address this issue in the 2017 NBA draft. One possible solution is shooting guard Donovan Mitchell.

The Raptors backcourt looks very thin due to the injury suffered by Kyle Lowry and trading Terrence Ross and a 2017 first round pick for Serge Ibaka. As a result, the Raptors’ roster is deficient in ball handlers and playmakers. While Lowry will hopefully be back healthy for the playoffs, we still have a need for one more wing player. Let’s consider Donovan Mitchell

Who is Donovan Mitchell and why should we draft him?

Donovan Mitchell is a 6 foot 3 200 pound Louisville sophomore who plays shooting guard. In Louisville’s disappointing first round loss to Michigan he had 19 points, seven rebounds and 5 assists. Mitchell has improved vastly; he has gone from averaging 7 points to almost 16 in his second year at Louisville.

Offensively, there were questions about Mitchell’s shooting as he shot 25% from three but those questions have now disappeared as he shoots 35% from three point-range. This is a sound enough percentage that opponents have to respect him as a legitimate shooting threat. Opposing defences have tightly guarded him thus leaving space for him to drive to the rim where he demonstrates his incredible athletic skills. Mitchell is an aggressive player who wants to finish at the basket with powerful dunks and alley-oops.

Defensively, he is a pest as he has a huge wingspan measuring at 6 foot 10. This allows him to get his long arms into passing lanes and deflect or better yet steal the ball. His 2.1 steals a game led the ACC and Raptors fans know Coach Dwane Casey loves defensive players who are aggressive on the offensive end.

  Potential question marks

At 6 foot 3 he is undersized for the shooting guard position and this may create issues in the league as he will have problems shooting over taller shooting guards in the NBA.  While he has played some point guard for Louisville, Mitchell has a score-first mentality rather than a pass-first one. Mitchell also has questionable shot selection as he loves to settle for long contested jumpers.

Mitchell lacks consistency on the defensive end of the ball and being undersized makes it harder to contest shots as players can shoot over him. But his athleticism makes up for this and he has the potential to be a sound defender in the NBA.

Mar 19, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan Wolverines guard Derrick Walton Jr. (10) drives past Louisville Cardinals guard Donovan Mitchell (45) during the first half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 19, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan Wolverines guard Derrick Walton Jr. (10) drives past Louisville Cardinals guard Donovan Mitchell (45) during the first half in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Take a chance on him

Mitchell has the potential to be a legitimate 3 and D player in the NBA for a long time. His ceiling is a perennial sixth man of the year backup guard. He has a mixture of Eric Bledsoe and Marcus Smart in his game.  He showed marked improvement from his freshman to his sophomore season.

Respected NBA draft websites such as draftexpress.com and bleacher report have Mitchell going 20th and 23rd respectively in the upcoming draft. What do you think Rapture nation? Is Mitchell a player you would like to see in Toronto? Comment below and let me know.

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