SLC Dunk - Donovan Mitchell will be out against the Dallas Mavericks because of concussion protocol

[James Hansen]

Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images

Mitchell will miss the back end of the Jazz’s back to back against the Mavericks

According to the Utah Jazz, Donovan Mitchell will miss tonight’s game against the Dallas Mavericks because of the NBA’s concussion protocol.

Donovan is out tonight.https://t.co/rtd46okSzD

— utahjazz (@utahjazz) January 27, 2021

According to the Jazz it’s not clear when the injury occurred but showed symptoms the day after.

There was a play last night in the first half where Mitchell grabbed a rebound and then fell hard hitting his head against Mitchell Robinson’s leg. Whether that is the play it happened it’s not clear.

At this point we don’t know how long it will be that Mitchell will be out. According to the NBA concussion protocol Mitchell will need to be monitored at minimum for the next 24 hours after injury.

It also states that for a player to return he needs to pass the Return to Participation Requirements which are:

i. He is without concussion-related symptoms at rest;

ii. He has been evaluated by a physician;

iii. He has successfully completed the NBA return-to-participation exertion process; and

iv. A team physician has discussed the return-to-participation process and decision with the Director of the NBA Concussion Program. Note that the final return-to-participation decision is to be made by the player’s team physician, in order to maximize the consistency of care for the player.

6. Return-to-Participation Exertion Process:

a. The return to participation process involves several steps of increasing exertion – from a stationary bike, to jogging, to agility work, to non-contact team drills.

b. With each step, a focused neurological examination is performed and a player must be symptom free to move to the next step. If a player is not symptom free after a step, he stops until he is symptom free and begins again at the previous step of the process (i.e., the last step he passed without any symptoms).

c. It’s important to note that there is no timeframe to complete the process. Each injury and player is different and recovery time can vary in each case.

You can read the NBA’s concussion protocol here.

Whatever the timeline is, concussions can be serious and Utah needs to be careful to make sure Mitchell is 100% recovered before he comes back.

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