Here’s where I was when it happened.
I had just instructed my 11th grade students on a personal narrative writing assignment modeled after the NPR series, “This I Believe.” It’s a short reflection based on events that have shaped who you are, grounded in everyday events. I had given them my examples: I believe writing is therapeutic, I believe in cliches, and, the kicker, I believe the Utah Jazz are part of my family. I had dinner with them, I said, they visited my family when we were in Primary Children’s, and I got to talk to them when I covered a few games for the Deseret News. Thinking of these highlights, I expressed to my class in hyperbolic fashion, I love them as ball players, but I also love them as good dudes.
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My students were turned loose and it was actually quiet as kids got into the moment and started their writing task. A good student of mine had been working, took a second to look at his phone, and then slowly lifted his head up and said, in the middle of the silence, “Uh, Godfrey, I think Donovan just got traded.”
A few murmors broke out amongst the class. I groaned “NOOO,” and looked at my phone. My best friend had texted me a screenshot of Woj tweets. And when Woj tweets, he only tweets truth.
I would hate it no matter where he went.
3X All-Star. On highlights, in commercials. We’re on ESPN, TNT. A guy. Sure, high volume, say what you will, but a guy. Face of franchise guy. Top 20-25 in the NBA guy. Just finished the first year of his first real contract. Who we drafted. And had locked down for at least two more years. Put us on the map his rookie year and didn’t let up in the five years that followed.
Remember bucket for bucket with Jamal Murray in the Bubble Playoffs, scoring 50 a night? Remember the Jazz jersey he wore while winning a dunk contest? His arms raised high after winning game six on the road of Oklahoma City to secure a playoff series his rookie year? Remember the put back dunk against the Lakers that signified his moment of arrival? The putback dunk against Houston in the playoffs? The poster against Dallas right before halftime? Remember when LeBron, D-Wade found him immediately after a Jazz win and dapped him up while whispering advice in his ear? Chris Paul, James Harden doing the same? Remember the eight straight, including two huge threes, with less than 30 seconds left to force OT against San Antonio? Or back-to-back clutch threes to sink Milwaukee? Or all the killer step back swishes he mastered at Vivint? The baseball passes to a corner for three? “Bang” and “oh my” uttered every night by Craig Bolerjack.
And off the court, remember the commercials before Spiderman Far From Home was released, in a hotel scene with Tom Holland and Jake Gyllenhol? Remember when he was driving home from practice during the playoffs, witnessed a pretty nasty car accident, and then stood by to make sure everything was OK? What about when he crashed a 4th of July pool party? Or, his Adidas shoes, the Determination. Over. Negative campaign and the mountain top, Mailman colorway edition? Hanging out with Royce O’Neale and Georges Niang on a college football tour in Utah? He paid for someone’s groceries when their card was getting declined, randomly gifted to fix an iphone when he was in the Apple store with someone in need, and would give out his shoes to kids before so many games. He even teamed up with Granite School District during the pandemic to provide meals to students in the summer. In the bubble, the back of his jersey read “Say Her Name.”
The stories are as endless as the highlights, and that’s why he was just so special.
On and off the court, he was the perfect representation of a star, the guy you want to root for and feel grateful he is on your squad. The Jazz brass saw it early. Dennis Lindsey, GM at the time, talked about how he simply “Fit the Jazz DNA, fit the personality of our organization very well.” Steve Starks, team president, said, “Donovan plays with joyfulness. He brings joyfulness to the gym, and he brings a lot of joy off the court and people love that because they feel a connection with the team at a deeper level.” He added, “That’s just him. You want the best players you can get, and when it happens that the best players also have that type of personality, it just makes our jobs much easier. We like to joke that he’s our chief ticket salesman and he’s our chief marketing officer, just because of who he is.”
After five good years, he is switching squads after a summer of trade rumors and inevitable change was forthcoming. The Jazz grab more draft assets and young talent while the Cleveland Cavaliers get our star, who said he’d always just be a “Rookie from Utah because this feels like home, and home is everything.”
For me, I just can’t let that go.
My first time covering the Utah Jazz was a thrill as a fanboy. I was trying to remain professional and do my journalistic duty, but walking into the Hot Rod Hudley Media Room, wearing a media pass, and then getting to wander into the locker rooms was just so, so, so cool. In my first gig, I stood around with big eyes, just happy to be a fly on a wall. After standing through a few interviews, taking notes, and doing the gig, it was Donovan’s turn to chat with the media outside of his locker. I don’t remember what he talked about, but he said the right things and was personable – things we’ve seen from him a million times since. As he finished up, most members went to the next stop or left to start writing their beat. I lingered behind just slightly, made eye contact with DM, and said, “Hey, I know this isn’t professional, but this is my first time doing this and I just got to tell you I love watching you play; I’m so glad you are in Utah.” He smiled, I melted, and then he gave me a fist bump.
A couple gigs later, I actually summoned the courage to interview a few people instead of just listening to the topic points. The Jazz were playing the Sacramento Kings, but were also set to play them again within the week. I figured I could do a special feature piece before that second game, and would use these pre and post-game locker room visits to double dip and collect my content. After talking to the Sacramento side, I made my way back into Jazz and found Donovan. When there was a slight break in the question spree, I spoke up. Asking him about his relationship and history with DeArron Fox – they have been friends since high school – I got positive quotes about two buddies and put together a solid piece. It’s a connection and a professional highlight that I won’t forget.
Let’s reflect.
In the post Stockton-Malone era, the Jazz have had good guys, All-Stars, but arguably only one or two superstars.
In 2003, Andrei Kirilenko was an All-Star, Carlos Boozer made the team twice while playing for the Jazz, Mehmet Okur once, and Deron Williams twice. Then, Gordon Hayward made it once before Mitchell and Rudy Gobert earned their three straight, with Mike Conley earning one as well. While Donovan never made an All-NBA selection, D-Will did twice, Boozer did once, and Gobert did four times.
If you think of those guys, Kirilenko played 10 years in Utah, Boozer for six, Okur for seven, Williams for five-and-a-half, and Hayward for seven. MItchell is the least, with five, but leaves the franchise with the 8th most field goals (only behind Derrick Favors in the modern-era of Jazz players), 2nd in 3-point field goals (only behind Joe Ingles), 8th in points (AK-47 is 6th), and 4th in points per game. His mark on the franchise is in the record books with those stats, coupled with some of the best regular season team records, too. His mark on the city is visible, too, with #45 jerseys seen anywhere you go, plus murals on bridges, too.
I’m not ready to move on. I’m not ready to get optimistic about draft picks and possibilities. I’m not ready to concede grades for the trade or what we won and how our future hangs in the Draft Gods’ hands. I’m not ready to rebuild and develop talent. I’m not ready to state in confidence that I trust Danny Ainge and his approach. Admittedly, I would be so bad at a front-office gig, doing this solely on a professional level. I would be so bad at making basketball decisions based only on basketball. Even still, Donovan was a good dude and a good ball player who I would have desperately done anything to keep him long enough to hang a jersey in his name, or add a statue out front, or sit in a parade when good things came our way. To awkwardly compare to the iconic Remember the Titans, Coach Boone sits at a press conference and confesses that you can not replace a Gary Bertier, after his All-American is injured in a terrible car accident. With his on-court skill set and off-court persona, it’ll be difficult for Utah to replace their Donovan Mitchell.
Steve Godfrey Writes 