By Mark Haynes | OBSERVER Correspondent
After three seasons with the Sacramento Kings, Davion Mitchell’s time with the organization had expired. A trade sent him to the Toronto Raptors during the 2024 NBA draft. The information was brought to him by a few phone calls he initially missed while taking a nap at home.
On Wednesday, November 6th, the Kings spoiled Mitchell’s return to the Golden 1 Center by defeating the Raptors 122-107. After the game, Mitchell spoke with The OBSERVER about his feelings about being traded.
“You want to stay on one team your entire career, but few get that opportunity,” Mitchell said.” Although I wish that happened to me, I wasn’t really expecting to be here forever.”
Mitchell understood it was a business move for the Kings and had no hard feelings toward his former team about being moved. But he acknowledged he was sometimes frustrated with his playing time in past seasons. Playing behind All-Star De’Aaron Fox, there was little Mitchell could do to change that. So, he chose to learn from the star point guard instead of being bitter.
“When you’re playing behind a guy and want more minutes, sometimes the minutes are just not there,” Mitchell told The OBSERVER. “I was behind one of the best guards in our league, so I had to be patient. I sometimes thought about leaving, but I could’ve been traded into a bad situation. I’m happy where I ended up, but it could’ve been different if this happened last season.”
Mitchell averaged 7.4 points and 2.8 assists in 20.4 minutes per game during his time with the Kings. He was arguably the best on-ball defender during his tenure and played a key role in helping the Kings make the postseason for the first time in nearly two decades.
Although it was difficult for Mitchell, the young guard was relieved and excited when he learned from the Kings’ General Manager, Monte McNair, that he was being dealt to the Raptors.
“One of my agents talked to the Kings before the draft and was told it’s possible I might be traded during the draft,” Mitchell told The OBSERVER. “So honestly, the entire day, I was a little nervous because I didn’t know where I was going or if I was staying.”
Mitchell was experiencing many emotions after hearing he could no longer be in Sacramento, so instead of sitting around and worrying about them, he decided to sleep them off. He had multiple missed call alerts when he woke up, so he knew what they were about.
“When I found out I got traded to Toronto, I felt it would be a great fit for me,” Mitchell shared. “They are a young team, and I knew it would be a good opportunity for me. The Raptors were looking for a guy who could pressure the ball because they didn’t have that type of player last year, so I knew I could go in and do what I love and play defense.”
Mitchell was a fan favorite and a guy his team loved. He said he received calls and text messages from all of his former Kings teammates. They all had encouraging words that helped make this transition a little smoother.
So far this season, Mitchell has started in 8 of 10 games for the Raptors. He’s currently averaging 9.7 points, 6.1 assists, and 1 steal.