The Knicks in all probability ought to have listened to Rick Pitino.
Showing on Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart’s “Roomates Show” podcast, the now-St. John’s head coach stated he urged the Knicks in 2017 to draft Donovan Mitchell, whom he coached at Louisville.
The Knicks, who had been run by Phil Jackson on the time, held the No. 8 decide in that 12 months’s draft.
“I called them up and said, ‘Listen, take my guy Donovan Mitchell. He’s gonna kill it. Don’t pay attention to what you think some of his weaknesses are. He’s gonna kill it,’” stated Pitino, who was a Knicks assistant from 1983-85 and their head coach from 1987-89.
“They said, ‘Nah, I don’t know if we can take him that high.’”
As a substitute, the Knicks chosen French level guard Frank Ntilikina, who by no means got here near dwelling as much as his lottery-pick standing.
In 4 seasons with the Knicks, Ntilikina averaged solely 5.5 factors per sport and shot 36.6% from the sector in 211 appearances, together with 55 begins.
Mitchell, who was born in Westchester County and performed highschool basketball in Connecticut, went No. 13 to the Utah Jazz and rapidly established himself as one of many stars of that draft class.
The high-scoring guard, now of the Cleveland Cavaliers, has been an All-Star in every of the previous six years and completed fifth in NBA MVP voting final season. Mitchell’s Cavs are one of many Knicks’ greatest threats within the Jap Convention.
Earlier than he dedicated to Louisville in 2014, Mitchell had narrowed his record of faculties to Villanova, Windfall and Indiana, Pitino recalled.
However Pitino satisfied Mitchell to go to Louisville earlier than he made his determination.
“I watched him in summer basketball and I loved him. I thought he was a freak athlete but couldn’t shoot,” Pitino informed Brunson and Hart.
“I said, ‘Just visit. Watch the player development session. I’m gonna put you on a split screen with Steph Curry. I’m gonna show you Steph Curry’s arc, and I’m gonna show you your arc.’ So we did it.”
That session made fairly the impression on Mitchell, who disappeared to the lavatory throughout a dinner later within the go to.
“My phone is blowing up in my pocket … and my kids are telling me that Donovan Mitchell just committed,” Pitino stated. “In the bathroom, he went on Twitter and committed to Louisville. He came back and said, ‘Coach, stand up.’ I said, ‘Why?’ He said, ‘Give me a hug. I’m a Louisville Cardinal.’”
Mitchell was a part of the identical draft class as Hart, whom the Jazz drafted thirtieth general earlier than buying and selling him to the Los Angeles Lakers in a draft-day deal.
“He was in my draft workout,” Hart informed Pitino on the podcast.
“I’m like, ‘His jump shot’s trash. I’m gonna give him space.’ I don’t think he missed a shot his whole workout.”
Mitchell, a 36.7% shooter on 3-pointers over his nine-year NBA profession, has additionally credited Pitino for serving to him rework his leap shot throughout his two years at Louisville.
“I tell people all the time, those were the worst two years but the best two years of my life,” Mitchell stated throughout a latest interview with Boardroom.
“I was always a dog. I was always hungry. But there’s, like, another level. It’s like another button to be pushed. That man is the master of finding whatever that is and pushing it.”
