In 22 years, the Jazz used Mitchell 1 to 8. How are these players developing now? Two people get the maximum salary

Mitchell, who was selected by the Jazz in the 13th pick in the first round in 2017, quickly showed his talent as soon as he entered the league. In the first year, he not only won the best rookie, but also led the team to eliminate the Thunder with Westbrook, George and Anthony in the playoffs. Under the leadership of Mitchell, the Jazz can get playoff spots in the fiercely competitive Western Conference every year, especially in the 2020-2021 season, he helped the team to win the No. 1 record in the Western Conference.

However, since the Jazz's lineup cap has been nailed to death, after losing to the Mavericks in the first round in 2022, the team was completely determined to rebuild, so they kept saying that they would not trade Mitchell's Jazz management, and they still put him on the shelves in the offseason. In the end, in order to get Mitchell, the Cavaliers reached an 8-for-1 deal with the Jazz. So three years have passed. How are the players in that deal now developing? Both of them have received their maximum salary!

1.Mitchell

When the outside world first learned that Mitchell was traded to the Cavaliers, many people were not optimistic about their cooperation, because at that time the Cavaliers already had another backcourt core, Garland, and both he and Mitchell were small defenders who needed to hold the ball and defend as much as possible. However, after Mitchell actually played with Garland, they still had a chemical reaction beyond expectations. In the Cavaliers' first season, Mitchell averaged 28.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.5 steals, 3.6 three-pointers, and a shooting percentage of 48.4%. It can be seen that with Garland, Mitchell focused more energy on scoring, so he also scored a career-high production efficiency.

With the help of Mitchell, the Cavaliers also ended their reconstruction and launched a rush to the championship. Last year, the two sides also signed a three-year, $150 million early contract renewal. Last season, the Cavaliers replaced their new head coach Atkinson, and he also made the team change drastically. The Cavaliers won 64 wins in the Eastern Conference first place in the regular season. In addition, Mitchell, a star, was selected into the All-A-First Team with his average of 24 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

However, in the playoffs, the Cavaliers' performance surprised the fans again. They lost to the Pacers in the second round, which reminds people of the situation when Mitchell was at the Jazz, and the team played well in the regular season, but was eliminated early as the playoffs. Later, as the core contracts such as Mitchell take effect, the Cavaliers' salary pressure will become greater and greater, so there is not much time left for them to compete for the championship. If they still cannot make it out of the Eastern Conference next season, the team is likely to be disbanded.

2. Markanen

and Mitchell were from Markanen, who was selected in the 7th pick in the first round, but his performance in the Bulls has not improved much in those years. Later, he joined the Cavaliers. Markanen not only did not make any progress, but also regressed. This is also because the team devoted more energy to Mobri, who was in the same position as him. Because of this, when trading Mitchell in 2022, the Cavaliers chose to use him as a bargaining chip to the Jazz.

However, this became the turning point of Markkanen's career. In the first year of joining the Jazz, his data soared to an average of 25.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 3 three-pointers per game, where his off-ball offense shines. Immediately afterwards, although Markkanen's data declined in the second year, he still averaged 23.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2 assists, 3.2 three-pointers per game. In the end, after some negotiations, the Jazz decided to renew his contract with him with a four-year, 195 million contract.

But after the renewal of the contract, Markkanen was in a poor state. Last season, he averaged only 19 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and a shooting percentage of 42.3%. In this case, the Jazz tried to test his trading market. As a result, considering his big contract, no team would be willing to take over easily. Fortunately, Markkanen is only 28 years old. It’s not that he has no possibility of recovery in his condition, but that the Jazz are rebuilding and they don’t have much salary pressure.

3. Sexton, who entered the league's No. 8 pick Sexton in 2018, had his highest season with the Cavaliers in the 2020-2021 season. That year, he averaged 24.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1 steal per game, but later he lost to the latter in his internal competition with Garland. This is because Sexton's style of play is not as modern as Garland, who is better at magic balls, pick-and-rolls, and passes. Sexton is a relatively single player on the offensive end. Coupled with the impact of his injury later, the Cavaliers finally decided to send him away. After joining the Jazz, Sexton also failed to be reused at the beginning, and his positioning has been hovering between the starter and the substitute. However, Sexton basically started firmly last season, and he averaged 18.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. However, because the team is no longer short of young defenders, in order to continue to train these players, Sexton was traded to the Hornets in the offseason.

But the Hornets now not only have Ball and Miller, but also Knypool, the No. 4 pick this year, also needs training, so Sexton obviously won't get too much time and ball rights here, and he is likely to not stay here for long.

4.Abaki

When Abaki was traded in 2022, he was still the rookie who was just selected. His characteristic is his potential 3D with good physical fitness. However, in his first year in the league, Abaki averaged 7.9 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.4 three-pointers per game, and his overall performance can only be said to be average. In the second season, Abakki not only did not make much progress, but also declined, so he was sent to the Raptors before the regular season ended..

Abakie's performance at the Raptors was also very average. Even when he was 24 years old, he had to represent the Raptors in the summer league. The most important thing was that he played very poorly at that time, with only 6 points and 5 rebounds per game, and his three shooting percentages were only 36%, 14%, and 60% respectively. However, the Raptors did not give up on the option of executing Abakki's team in the new season, and he finally repaid the team's trust with practical actions. Last season's regular season, he averaged 10.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.6 three-pointers, and his outside shooting percentage was 39.9%.