Donovan Mitchell, the former Louisville men’s basketball player, made history as the first to be named as a starter for the NBA All-Star Game. He played for Team Giannis in the 2023 exhibition and was instrumental in their 184-170 win over Team LeBron. Mitchell finished with 40 points, 10 assists, and four rebounds in 30 minutes on the floor. He shot 15-of-25 from the field and 8-of-17 on three-point attempts. His performance was the second-highest scoring mark of the night, just behind his teammate and the All-Star Game MVP, Jayson Tatum, who scored 55 points. Mitchell also broke his own All-Star Game scoring record for former Louisville players.
This was Mitchell’s fourth consecutive All-Star Game appearance, having come off the bench in his previous three games. In 2020, he scored seven points, four assists, five rebounds, and two steals. In 2021, he notched 15 points, four rebounds, four assists, and a steal. He missed the 2022 game due to a non-COVID-related illness. Mitchell is currently in his first season with the Cleveland Cavaliers after being traded by the Utah Jazz in the offseason. He’s averaging a career-high of 27.3 points per game, with a 48.0 field goal percentage and a 38.7 three-point percentage, both of which are on track to be the best of his six-year career. He’s also averaging 4.9 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game, helping to lead Cleveland to a 38-23 overall record, which is the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference.
Earlier in the season, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound shooting guard made history by dropping 71 points in a 145-134 overtime victory over the Bulls. He had the eighth-most points by an NBA player in a single game, and it was the most since Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game against the Raptors on Jan. 22, 2006.
