The Utah Jazz traded Donovan Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers this summer. Rudy Gobert, meanwhile, was dispatched to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In return for Mitchell, Utah received three unprotected first-rounders in 2025, 2027 and 2029, as well as a pair of pick swaps in 2026 and 2028.
For Gobert, they got a 2023 first-round pick, a 2025 first-round pick, a 2026 pick swap, a 2027 first-round pick, 2029 first-round pick and Jarred Vanderbilt – along with a bunch of spare parts.
Why did the Jazz opt to blow a team with two superstars up in this fashion? Because they openly hated each other.
Or at least that’s what everyone assumed.
This week, Mitchell offered a different perspective.
During a recent appearance on J.J. Redick’s podcast, Mitchell got brutally honest about his relationship with Gobert.
“To be honest with you, our relationship got better after Covid,” Mitchell said.
“Because I understood what the h*ll he was taking about…our relationship grew after the Covid situation. We got better on the floor, we got better as a team.”
Beyond that, Mitchell believes his beef with Gobert ultimately got overblown courtesy of the press.
“Him and I, I think it was blown way out of proportion,” Mitchell said.
Is that actually true? It’s hard to say. Gobert’s comments on their relationship are self-explanatory.
Ditto with what Danny Ainge ultimately said about why the break up had to happen.
It’s also worth remembering what Mitchell’s response to the Cavaliers acquiring him was. His real response. It was quite telling.
The photos don’t lie. https://t.co/adRmfaJTLU
— Game 7 (@game7__) October 21, 2022
In any case, whatever the true nature of the relationship between Mitchell and Gobert was, it’s over now.
Which of these two will go on to have the more successful career independent of the other from this point forward?
Time will tell.
Related: Lee Corso’s Wild College Football Gameday Video Goes Viral
Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
