Sports

Donovan Mitchell Reveals He Was in the Building When LeBron James Made 'The Decision'

As a sixth-grader, Donovan Mitchell was in attendance when King James announced his big decision to join the Miami Heat.

Chris Nicol
Image via USA Today Sports
USA Today Sports

LeBron James has a huge decision coming up: will he stay with the Cavs, or leave Cleveland for the second time in his career? No one seems to know what LeBron plans to do.

King James still comes under fire for the way he left Cleveland the first time. It wasn't just that he left his hometown squad for a loaded Miami Heat team, joining stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. It was more so that he turned his free-agency decision into a nationally televised program. People accused him of being a prima donna.

"In this fall, I'm gonna take my talents to South Beach," James said on ESPN, breaking Cavs' fans hearts.

James' choice came to be known as The Decision. He made his 2010 announcement at the Boys & Girls Club of Greenwich, Conn.

Oddly and hilariously enough, a 13-year-old Donovan Mitchell was one of the children in attendance for the decision. As Yahoo's Dan Devine reported, Mitchell, who was a sixth-grader in Greenwich, was thrilled with James choosing the Heat.

"So, as a big LeBron fan in the sixth grade, I forced my mom to let me go," Mitchell said, via DeVine. "I wanted him to go to Miami. I wanted him to get his first ring."

Not every kid there was happy, though.

"The people there who were Knicks fans... they weren't too happy about it," Mitchell said. "I almost got hit in the head with a Snapple bottle because they were just throwing stuff around outside. It was cool. I was just celebrating, so it was pretty cool."

LeBron's decision to join Miami feels like it happened yesterday. You probably remember where you were, right?

Now think about the fact that one of the young people in that crowd is the NBA's Slam Dunk Champion and one of two favorites (with Philadelphia's Ben Simmons) to win Rookie of the Year. Time flies. And you're old.

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