Think of the year after graduating as your rookie season. Ask for help, don’t hold back, and don’t be discouraged by what others have achieved or what others think of you. That was just some of the advice given by Utah Jazz player Donovan Mitchell in a virtual commencement address to thousands of new graduates last spring. More than 9,000 degrees were awarded to the class of ’21, and Mitchell—known as a team player, community builder, and passionate advocate for education and social justice—encouraged them on.
“WHAT WOULD BE POSSIBLE IF, as a country, we watched the game tape and learned from history? If we brought the same curiosity and open-minded interest that we bring to studying chemistry, computer science, or business and applied it to listening to one another with respect and learning from viewpoints that are different from our own?”
—DONOVAN MITCHELL, Utah Jazz shooting guard
Mitchell's comments begin at 1:02:47.
Mr Mitchell is an amazing young man