2. Davion Mitchell
This season has not been an easy one for the former lottery pick. For the first time in his career, Davion Mitchell had to fight for minutes, and he lost that battle early on. Keon Ellis was taking his minutes for a while. With both of them focused on defense and struggling to contribute offensively, Mike Brown felt that only one could play.
Now, both are playing. When Ellis and Mitchell both knock down threes and provide some playmaking, while wreaking havoc on defense, they can both be in the rotation and even share the court at times.
Despite his late offensive surge, Mitchell’s production is way down. Too often, he seems hesitant and unsure of what to do. We all know that defense is his true calling card, so it is easy to look past some minor offensive mistakes most of the time.
Not anymore. With Kevin Huerter, Malik Monk, and Trey Lyles, a whole lot of offense is currently sitting on the Kings’ bench. Mitchell is one of the players who will have to fill that void.
All season long, it seems he has been waiting for a chance to solidify his role as one of the main players off the Kings’ bench. This is it. The team will need him to be a true two-way presence if they want any chance of surviving this final stretch of the season with two of their main guards sidelined.