Donovan Mitchell Spins, Hits Tough Floater During Jazz/Celtics Game
Mar 23, 2022, 7:28 PM
Robert Williams III #44 of the Boston Celtics and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz compete for the ball during the second quarter of the game at TD Garden on March 23, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)
(Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell spun off a defender and hit a tough floater during Utah’s game against the Boston Celtics.
The Celtics hosted the Jazz at TD Garden on Wednesday, March 23.
With 9:35 remaining in the third quarter, Mitchell spun off the defense by Celtics star Jayson Tatum and pushed a shot towards the hoop.
Mitchell’s attempt flew through the cylinder for two points.
The shot cut Boston’s lead to 72-50.
Watch @spidadmitchell work 🕷 pic.twitter.com/gAIsDGpCsY
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 24, 2022
At the end of the third quarter, Mitchell and the Jazz trailed, 93-68.
Mitchell led Utah with 30 points on 11-21 field goals. He added four rebounds, one assist, and a steal in 27 minutes on the floor.
This season, Mitchell is averaging 26.0 points per game on 45.1 percent shooting, including 36.3 percent from downtown.
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Jazz vs. Celtics
Though Bojan Bogdanovic and Danuel House Jr. are both traveling with the Jazz, neither player has made an appearance on the team’s current six-game road trip.
Bogdanovic has missed the Jazz last five games with a calf strain and has been ruled out Wednesday’s game against Boston.
House Jr. suffered a knee bruise in the Jazz loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on March 14 and hasn’t appeared in the last four games.
Between the two players, the Jazz are missing key depth on the wing and two valuable floor spacing scorers.
The @utahjazz game tonight against the @celtics might be their toughest of the season.#TakeNote https://t.co/SfRSkUANAe
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 23, 2022
Bogdanovic is the Jazz’s second-leading scorer at 18.1 points per game while shooting 39 percent from the three-point line.
House Jr. is averaging just 6.5 points per game but leads the team in three-point shooting at 44 percent.
The Jazz have offered no timeline on when either player might return.
Celtics Are NBA’s Hottest Team
Exactly two months ago, the Celtics sat at an even 24-24 on the season and in the eighth seed of the Eastern Conference.
But over the last two months, Boston has become nearly unbeatable winning 22 of their last 26 games while owning the league’s best net rating by a significant margin.
The Celtics are outscoring their opponents by an average of 15.1 points per game, and 15.8 points per 100 possessions. The next closest is the league-leading Phoenix Suns who own a net rating of 9.8 during the stretch.
📻 LISTEN LIVE: @utahjazz vs. @celtics on @ZoneSportsNet and the @kslsports app 🎷☘️🏀#TakeNote #UTAvsBOS https://t.co/LqmyLeIzsG
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 23, 2022
Boston’s offensive rating of 118.7 ranks third best during the stretch, while their 102.9 defensive rating is tops in the league, nearly five points better than the second-ranked Miami Heat.
The Celtics own the fourth-best record in the East but are just 2.5 games out of the top spot in the conference.
Utah’s game against Boston is broadcast on AT&T SportsNet, NBA League Pass, and The Zone Sports Network.
