“You were warned.” Said NBC Sports Kings insider James Ham on Monday night. “Davion Mitchell is an elite defender.”
“Off-Night” lived up to his nickname as he swarmed the Hornets with defensive pressure in an 80-70 victory to tip-off the Kings Las Vegas Summer League schedule.
On Twitter, where defensive highlights aren’t a regular fixture on fans’ feeds, No. 15 caught the community by storm, trending in the United States for hours after the game.
“There was no daylight between Mitchell and the ball, and he might be one of the world's five toughest six-footers to screen,” said Dan Favale in a Bleacher Report article following the game. Favale also likened his defensive acumen to listing “Human Eclipse" under the ‘Special Skills’ section of their resume.”
Davion’s pressure and instinct clearly translated throughout the team as well, as the Kings held the Hornets field goal percentage to under 40 percent and forced 25 turnovers in the game.
Chimezie Metu and Louis King benefitted from Mitchell’s relentless ball pressure, each racking up four steals in the contest.
“That’s his bread and butter, the way he attacks the game, the way he defends it,” echoed Kings Summer League head coach Bobby Jackson. “He’s a really really great on-ball defender. He has to get better off the ball and we’ve talked about it. But he sets the tone at the top of the key offensively and defensively for us.”
On the other side of the ball, Mitchell was just as spectacular - He finished the game with 10 points, nine assists, and zero turnovers.
The Kings return to action tonight against the Wizards at 7:00 P.M. PDT. You can watch the contest on NBA TV or for complete Kings Summer League coverage stay with Kings.com, the Kings App, and team social channels!