Donovan Mitchell slipped on a Mets cap as he readied for his interview Tuesday morning, and the colour scheme wasn’t misplaced on teammate Cedi Osman.
Orange, blue and white. Also Knicks colours.
“Should I take it off?” he requested Osman.
Mitchell, sitting on the house bench at MSG, eliminated the hat and coated his hair with a black hoodie. Another reminder that Mitchell isn’t a Knick.
“I’m done talking about it,” Mitchell mentioned. “I’m happy as hell to be where I’m at.”
It’s harder to recover from in New York. Sure, the Knicks have been two video games over .500 heading into Tuesday’s matchup towards Mitchell, however their ceiling stays low sufficient to query why Leon Rose allowed an All-NBA expertise to slide by means of his fingers.
Did Rose know he can discover a commerce goal extra worthy of all his future draft picks? Did the ‘nickel and dime’ haggling from Knicks govt Brock Aller, a negotiator throughout the course of, merely flip off the Jazz? Was Mitchell considered as a poor match subsequent to Jalen Brunson?
On the ultimate query, there have been pure issues about two undersized guards with defensive points sharing a backcourt. Mitchell, who was sure he was Knicks-bound earlier than the beautiful commerce to Cleveland, acknowledged that he contemplated his match subsequent to Brunson and Julius Randle.
It’s secure to say, given his glowing remarks about Brunson on Tuesday, that Mitchell thought he may make it work. Tom Thibodeau, a supply mentioned, had no reservations in regards to the pairing.
“We’ve got a lot of good things going here. You guys here got a lot of good things going on,” Mitchell mentioned. “Jalen’s playing out of his mind. And as a friend of Jalen who has known him for a long time, I was glad to see him hooping and doing his thing. People had questions about him coming here. Even last year when we played him in the playoffs, I knew, he knew, we all knew he was that type of player.”
Mitchell, as properly documented, desired a homecoming in New York. He grew up close to the Knicks follow facility. He dunked his first ball at a Harlem courtroom as a result of the blacktop was barely slanted. He grew up idolizing Carmelo Anthony and developed a bond with the previous Knicks star whereas understanding collectively within the offseason.
Mitchell’s father, an govt for the Mets, as soon as informed me that there’s a signed Frank Ntilikina jersey hanging within the household home. The implication was that it serves as a motivating reminder of who the Knicks drafted as an alternative in 2017.
But taking part in at dwelling isn’t really easy. Distractions are in every single place. Just ask Stephon Marbury. Mitchell discovered that at the same time as a customer. In his first matchup at MSG this season, Mitchell made all of the rounds with household and buddies. He embraced the return. Then he struggled and the Cavaliers have been pummeled by the Knicks on Dec. 4, 92-81.
Mitchell switched his technique for this journey.
“I haven’t seen anybody. Not even my mom,” mentioned Mitchell, who missed three straight video games heading into Tuesday with a groin damage and was listed as possible. “I’ve just been chilling at the hotel.”
In different phrases, Mitchell is targeted on the Cavaliers. He’s carried out speaking a couple of summer season dalliance with the Knicks. He’s extra snug fielding questions in regards to the Mets and his religion in proprietor Steve Cohen after the Carlos Correa saga.
“At the end of the day, trust in Steve,” Mitchell mentioned. “Steve knows best.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com