Amid the fallout from Quinn Snyder’s departure after eight seasons as Utah Jazz coach, All-Star goalkeeper Donovan Mitchell Sources were described as “unstable, disruptive and questioning what that means for the future of the franchise,” sources told ESPN on Sunday.
Mitchell saw Snyder as an important part of his reasoning to commit to a maximum five-year contract extension in 2020, and Snyder’s decision to step down on Sunday left Mitchell “surprised and disappointed,” sources told ESPN.
Mitchell remains fond of Sneijder and accepts his reasons for stepping down, but he is spending the post-Snyder decision trying to address what losing the coach means to the greater extent of the organization and himself, sources said.
The sources said Utah is expected to begin searching for training immediately. Snyder has a win percentage of 0.623 over the past six seasons, and is the third best player in the NBA, according to ESPN Statistics and Information Research. He was between 372 and 264 (.585) in his eight seasons with Utah State.
Mitchell, a two-time All-Star, reached the Western Conference playoffs in each of his five seasons and has become the first guard since then Allen Iverson averaging 20 points in each of his five seasons, according to research by ESPN Stats & Information.
Snyder, the second-best coach in franchise history behind Jerry Sloan, forged a strong relationship with Mitchell and his co-star. Rudy Gobert.
The Jazz have reached the Western Conference semi-finals twice in the past five years but have been knocked out in the first round in each of the past two seasons. Jazz planned to be serious about improving the band in the commercial market this summer.
Mitchell has four years, $135 million left on his contract — including a player option in his final season.
