Donovan Mitchell Will Miss Game One Between Jazz And Grizzlies

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell will miss the opening game of the first-round series between the Memphis Grizzlies and Utah.

The Jazz are slated to host the Grizzlies Sunday night at Vivint Arena.

Mitchell will miss Utah’s first postseason game as he continues to recover from an ankle sprain that caused him to miss the final 16 games of the regular season.

Donovan Mitchell is out tonight (right ankle sprain).

— utahjazz (@utahjazz) May 23, 2021

The move is a surprising reversal after the guard was cleared by the team earlier in the week to return to the practice floor, and was not listed on the Jazz injury report Saturday night.

Mitchell went through shootaround on Sunday morning and said he intended to play.

“There’s always going to be soreness when you come back from an injury like this,” Mitchell said. “There’s always going to be things that haven’t been activated in what has it been, five months? But I feel good, ready to go tonight. No pain and excited to be going.”

Donovan Mitchell this morning:

"I feel good. Ready to go tonight, no pain and excited to be going."

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) May 23, 2021

Mitchell originally injured the ankle on April 16 against the Indiana Pacers and was re-evaluated weekly ahead of the playoffs. The two-time All-Star returned to practice on Wednesday and said he expected to play depending on how his ankle responded to practice.

Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder met with the media prior to Game 1 and said that Mitchell didn’t suffer a setback.

Donovan Mitchell didn’t suffer a setback to his injury.

After meeting with trainers today they decided they weren’t comfortable with where his ankle was before game one.

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) May 23, 2021

Utah and Memphis will tip-off the first-round series tonight at 7:30 pm MT. The game will broadcast on TNT, AT&T SportsNet, and 97.5 FM.