Donovan Mitchell all but confirms that his replacement is already on the Jazz

The Utah Jazz earned their most impressive win in some time last night by defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers. In a game featuring Donovan Mitchell, who is still playing at the All-NBA level, he was outplayed by Keyonte George, leading him to confirm that George is his replacement in Utah.

After the game, Mitchell talked about George and even said he should be on the All-Star team this season.

“They came in there and just beat us. It started with Keyonte George, who deserves to be an All-Star,” he told reporters. “A young guy I know personally, and I’m excited to see his progress, just like last year and this year.”

The box score doesn’t lie, as George’s 32 points on eight-of-16 shooting to go with 12 free throws and nine assists outpaced Mitchell’s 21 points on seven-of-18 shooting to go with four free throws and three assists. The difference in performance clearly played a role in the final score.

George and Mitchell aren’t exactly the same player archetype, but it’s hard not to see the similarities between them, especially how they fared in their respective third seasons in the NBA. George is a better playmaker than Mitchell, but it’s hard not to argue with the results.

The big difference between George now and Mitchell then is that the Jazz were trying to win when the latter played, while the former plays for a team that appears to be tanking, but only slightly. But as the Jazz start trying to win more games, George will undoubtedly be compared more to the former Jazz star.

And why not? He finishes well at the rim, he makes mistakes and he’s even gotten better as a floor spacer. He is an offensive generator whose results are hard to argue with. He didn’t burst onto the scene like Mitchell did in his rookie year, but the Jazz’s future looks very secure thanks to George’s jump.

The irony of George being Mitchell’s replacement

George could very well completely fill the void left by Mitchell as he continues to reach his ceiling as a player. It might be an exaggeration to suggest he could surpass Mitchell before too long, but never say never.

Anyway, the irony of George becoming Mitchell 2.0 is that it wouldn’t have happened in the first place if it weren’t for the Rudy Gobert trade, as George came from one of the picks Minnesota sent to Utah in that trade. Everyone knows the troubled history between Mitchell and Gobert, so seeing them replace Mitchell because of the Gobert trade feels like poetic irony in a way.

George has grown exponentially over the course of this season to the point that he is surpassing the player he was supposed to replace. Getting Mitchell’s replacement won’t automatically return the Jazz to contender status, but it’s just a start.