West Conf. Semis - Game 3: Houston Rockets 113-92 Utah Jazz - 5 Talking Points

#2 Donovan Mitchell's shooting woes continue

Donovan Mitchell and PJ Tucker

A day after fellow ROY contender Ben Simmons had his worst playoff game thus far, Donovan Mitchell followed suit. They were both due one in all honesty. Rookies aren't supposed to excel in every playoff game and that was the case tonight. Mitchell finished with 10 points on 4/16 shooting. He only had 2 points at the half as he struggled to deal with Houston's new defensive gameplan.

Capela gave him no easy looks at the rim and many of his passing lanes were completely shut down. Mitchell has been able to compensate for some off shooting nights in these playoffs by doing the other things well like he did in Game 2 but that wasn't the case tonight. He followed up his career-high 11 assists in Game 2 with just 3 in this one.

Expect Mitchell to bounce back in Game 4, but the Jazz need Ricky Rubio back as soon as possible. Mitchell isn't a natural facilitator and taking on both the scoring and playmaking role might end up being too much for the rook.