Is Donovan Mitchell playing against the Memphis Grizzlies tonight in Game 1 of the 2021 NBA playoffs?
NBA Western Conference top seed the Utah Jazz tipped off their playoff campaign against 8th seed Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies defeated Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors in the play-in tournament to earn the right to compete in the playoffs. For Utah Jazz fans, the biggest cause for concern will be the fitness status of their most prolific scorer this season - Donovan Mitchell.
Donovan Mitchell suffered an ankle sprain in the Utah Jazz’s victory over the Indiana Pacers on 16th April. The “Spida” missed the last 16 matches of the regular season and was doubtful to return in time for the first game of the playoffs. In this article, we look at whether Donovan Mitchell will be playing later today in the Utah Jazz’s playoff series game 1 against the Memphis Grizzlies.
NBA Playoffs 2021: Is Utah Jazz’s Donovan Mitchell fit enough to play against the Memphis Grizzlies?
Earlier today, the Utah Jazz released an official injury update for the roster, which listed only Ersan Ilyasova as questionable. Hence, fans will be excited to learn that Donovan Mitchell is expected to return to the lineup in game 1 against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Donovan Mitchell averaged 26.4 points and 5.2 assists throughout the regular season this year. The Utah Jazz were able to cope with his absence due to the improved form of multiple offensive players, most notably Bojan Bogdanovic, who had averaged over 25 points per game through the last ten matches of the regular season.
Regardless, Donovan Mitchell’s absence means that the Utah Jazz have all of their best players available for the matchup. The Utah Jazz’s three All-Stars will be itching to get off to a strong start against a gutsy Memphis Grizzlies side that edged past the Warriors riding on Ja Morant’s 35-point display.
Xavier Tillman, Desmond Bane and Grayson Allen all came off the bench to score in double digits and help their team engineer a victory. The Memphis Grizzlies had earlier lost to the Warriors in their final match of the regular season.