Donovan Mitchell grew up watching LeBron James. When the superstar forward made his infamous free agency announcement (“The Decision”) at a Boys and Girls Club in Greenwich, Connecticut, a young Mitchell was waiting outside. An angry Knicks fan threw a bottle that almost hit Mitchell in the head. Mitchell, meanwhile, was thrilled to see the new-look Heat in action.
He just didn’t know then that it was another player in a Miami uniform he should have been watching more closely: Dwyane Wade.
“I didn’t really know how I should model my game,” the 22-year-old Mitchell says now.