The Utah Jazz got decimated by the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night, falling 102-77 in Game 5 of the first round of the playoffs.
The team wasn’t playing well all game but things got even worse towards the end when star player Donovan Mitchell limped off the court when his hamstring tightened.
He ended the game with just nine points at 4-of-15 shooting with four turnovers.
When he exited the game, the team was already down by 28 points.
Still, Mitchell will be an important part of the team if they want to stay in this series.
So how serious is this hamstring injury?
Donovan Mitchell will get an MRI tomorrow. “We’ll see how it is, but I’m a competitor,” he said. https://t.co/aImsUjnxlw
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) April 26, 2022
Speaking after the game, Mitchell admitted he was in pain but wasn’t too worried about it.
“We’ll see how it is, but I’m a competitor,” he said.
He added: “I’ll be fine.”
But will he really be?
Mitchell Mending
Mitchell underwent an MRI on Tuesday in Salt Lake City and the results came back negative, according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
ESPN Sources: The MRI on the left hamstring of Jazz star Donovan Mitchell was negative today, but Mitchell is dealing with bruising in both of his quads. There remains optimism for his availability vs. Dallas in Game 6 on Thursday. The Mavericks lead the series, 3-2.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 26, 2022
If he is able to play again, the Jazz are hoping Mitchell returns to his usual self.
He is averaging 26 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 5 assists a game – which is a far cry from what he’s been doing in the playoffs.
Mitchell is only shooting 37.9% from the floor and 19.5% from the three-point range.
Therefore, not only does Mitchell need to have a healthy hamstring, he also needs to start playing like he was before the postseason began.
That’s a tall order, especially against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavs have Luka Doncic back and that’s making a big difference.
For example, Doncic put up 33 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 assists in Monday’s game.
He’s just one aspect of Dallas’ power.
So the Jazz have more problems than just Mitchell’s injury.
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