Utah Jazz All-Star History: Rookie Donovan Mitchell Wins the Dunk Contest

He made basketball look effortless, filling in the void of the now-Celtic Hayward and displaying the new future of the Utah Jazz. His pairing with elite rim-protector Rudy Gobert would become a formidable obstacle for the remainder of the league for the next five seasons.

So, when the rookie skydancer was invited to the All-Star Slam Dunk contest, Jazz fans finally had a reason to tune in for the first time since Jeremy Evans in 2012.

The lights came on, and Mitchell locked himself in, tossing a lob off the backboard before quickly thinking better of it. Retrieving the ball, he called to the baseline to reveal a second basket, where he set up just to the side of the first. Standing on the sideline, Mitchell took a running start and tossed that ball off the second backboard before catching and swinging a windmill slam to complete his first attempt.

His score was a perfect 50.

For his next attempt, needing a score of 42 to advance to the next round, Mitchell revealed the classic purple uniform underneath his flashy new city jersey. Donning the number 35 and the name of Darrell Griffith, a former Jazzman and Cardinal who was a repeat dunk contestant, Mitchell led his younger sister onto the floor for his second attempt.

Next onto the floor came Kevin Hart and his son. While no one was amazed by a player jumping over the vertically challenged actor, none could deny his second attempt would have Hart.

Ricocheting off the side of the backboard and with a one-hand flush, Mitchell elevated above his volunteers and finished was ferocious finesse -- if such a thing can even exist.

His next dunk? A 50. The following attempt? Another 50. 

Donovan needed a show-stopper. A heart-halter. He needed something to blow the roof off the building. Off came his gradient jersey to reveal a Vince Carter Raptors piece. One-for-one in stride with the former dunk contest champion, Mitchell exploded for a 360 windmill yam, and the crowd exploded in turn. 50s for Mitchell across the board granted the rookie the title of Dunk Contest Champion. 

That was the first indication that Utah found a special player in the 2017 NBA Draft. The rest is history.