Donovan Mitchell Won’t Defend His Dunk Contest Title At All-Star Weekend

Donovan Mitchell took the league by storm last season. Along with Ben Simmons and Jayson Tatum, he helped headline a Rookie of the Year race for the ages, and by the time the postseason rolled around, he was already playing well beyond his years as the Utah Jazz’s No. 1 option en route to an opening round upset over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the playoffs last spring.

In the middle of that stellar rookie campaign, Mitchell showed up at All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles and put on a show in the dunk contest, taking home the trophy and wowing spectators with an array of high-flying, acrobatic feats.

But things haven’t exactly picked up where they left off last season for Mitchell and the Jazz. His team got off to a sluggish start, which can be a death knell in the Western Conference, as Mitchell himself has appeared to succumb to the dreaded sophomore slump.

The Jazz have come alive lately, however, as they’ve won five straight and eight of their last 10 and suddenly find themselves in a tie for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. While the recent surge has happened, Mitchell says he won’t defend his dunk contest title at All-Star Weekend in Charlotte next month, opting instead to focus on helping Utah keep their momentum going.

Mitchell gave us all a treat last year, so it’s a shame we won’t get a chance to see what else he has up his sleeve. We still don’t know who will be invited to this year’s event, but there’s been a bit of a push to get 42-year-old Vince Carter back in the mix, as he continually likes to remind the world that he still has more hops than half the guys in the league right now.

Otherwise, we’ll be eagerly awaiting this year’s field of contestants to find out who’ll be the favorite to take home the crown.