Darrel Joseph Mitchell Jr. (born May 3, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He played high school basketball at St. Martinville Senior High School in St. Martinville, Louisiana, and was named Louisiana Mr. Basketball as a senior in 2002. He then played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

with the

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a ...

, staying for 4 years and reaching the NCAA Tournament Final Four in 2006. After going undrafted in the 2006 NBA draft, Mitchell started a professional career in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

with Turkish team

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...

. He participated in the

2007–08 Euroleague The 2007–08 Euroleague was the 8th season of the professional basketball competition for elite clubs throughout Europe, organised by Euroleague Basketball Company, and it was the 51st season of the premier competition for European men's clubs ov ...

with

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n team

Lietuvos rytas ''Lietuvos rytas'' (lit. 'Morning of Lithuania') is a Lithuanian daily newspaper. History and profile "Lietuvos rytas" was established in 1990 on a basis of newspaper "Komjaunimo tiesa". The paper is printed in Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also ...

. He has played in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, Lithuania,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, Turkey and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

High school career

Mitchell was born in

New Iberia, Louisiana New Iberia (french: La Nouvelle-Ibérie; es, Nueva Iberia) is the largest city in and parish seat of Iberia Parish, Louisiana, Iberia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The city of New Iberia is located approximately southeast of Lafayette, L ...

and attended St. Martinville Senior High School in

St. Martinville St. Martinville (french: Saint-Martin)Jack A. Reynolds. "St. Martinville" entry i"Louisiana Placenames of Romance Origin."LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses #7852. 1942. p. 480. is a city in and the parish seat of St. Martin Parish, Louisiana ...

, where his father Darrel Sr. was the head coach. As a sophomore, Mitchell was named in the all-district first team after averaging 22.2 points per game. In his junior year he averaged 21 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and 2.4 steals per game, and he was named Class 4A MVP; he was also a first-team all-district selection, and the St. Martinville Tigers reached the quarterfinals of 4A state tournament, where they lost to Woodlawn High School in the final seconds of the game. His father won the Coach of the Year award, after the team posted a 32-3 overall record for the season. He mostly played the

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...

position in high school, despite his frame made him undersized. Mitchell was invited to participate in the ABCD Camp, a camp for the best high school players in the US, in July 2001, the summer that preceded his senior year. Mitchell's senior season saw average 24.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.9 steals per game, shooting 41% from three. His 41-point performance against Lincoln High School of

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

in December 2001 earned him national interest, since Lincoln was led by future NBA player

Chris Bosh Christopher Wesson Bosh (born March 24, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. A Texas Mr. Basketball in high school, he played one season of college basketball for Georgia Tech before declaring for the 2003 NBA draft. Bos ...

and was ranked the best team in high school basketball by ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

''. Mitchell won the state 4A championship with the team, which posted a 36–4 record for the season. At the end of the year Mitchell was named the 2002 Louisiana Mr. Basketball by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association (LSWA), and he was also the ''

Gatorade Player of the Year The Gatorade Player of the Year awards are given annually to up and coming high school student-athletes in the United States. They are given for boys' baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine playe ...

'' for the state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. In his career at St. Martinville, Mitchell scored over 2,000 career points and also performed well academically, maintaining a 3.0

GPA Grading in education is the process of applying standardized measurements for varying levels of achievements in a course. Grades can be assigned as letters (usually A through F), as a range (for example, 1 to 6), as a percentage, or as a numbe ...

. In 2007, St. Martinville High School retired his jersey number, 22.

College career

Mitchell was recruited by several major

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

programs such as

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, among others. He signed for LSU in April 2002, choosing it over the University of Houston. Mitchell played his freshman season under coach John Brady as one of the main options off the bench: he appeared in all 32 games, averaging 19.8 minutes of playing time per game. On February 26, 2003 Mitchell shot 5/5 on three-pointers against

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

, scoring a then career-high 19 points. He ranked 6th on the team in scoring with 7 points per game, and was the best three-point shooter with a percentage of 42.4% on 3.1 attempts per game. In his sophomore season, Mitchell received increased playing time at 30.4 minutes per game, and started 17 of his 29 games, being advanced to the starting lineup in the second half of the season, during which he scored in double figures in 9 of his 12 final games. On February 4, 2004, in a game against

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

, Mitchel scored a career-high 22 points shooting 6/9 on three-pointers, and added 8 assists. Again Mitchell was the top three-point shooter on the team, taking more shots at 5.5 attempts per game, and scoring them at a 41.9% rate. He was the third best scorer on the team with an 11.9 average, behind senior

Jaime Lloreda José Jaime Lloreda Ferrón (born November 10, 1980) is a Panamanian professional basketball player. He is a longtime member of the Panama men's national basketball team. College career Lloreda played two years of junior college ball for Dixie ...

and freshman

Brandon Bass Brandon Samuel Bass (born April 30, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. Early life Bass was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the oldest of three siblings; he has a brother, Chris, and sister, Dashia. Bass is the son of C ...

. Coach Brady named Mitchell a full-time starter in his junior season, and the guard started all of the 30 games LSU played that year. After a 18-point game on January 12 against

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, Mitchell scored a new career high with 32 against

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

three days later. On January 18 he was named Player of the Week by the LSWA. On January 29, Mitchell scored 20 points against

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Univers ...

. Mitchell ended the season as the third best scorer on the team (tied with Antonio Hudson and behind Glen Davis and Brandon Bass) with 13.1 points per game. He also improved his assists average, which rose to 2.9, the second best mark on the team behind Tack Minor's 4.6 per game. He ranked 3rd in the SEC for free throw percentage with 84.6%. In his senior year he was part of the 2005–06 LSU team which included several players from Louisiana as part of the team's starting lineup and main rotation ( Glen Davis,

Tasmin Mitchell Tasmin Olajuwon Mitchell (born June 25, 1986) is an American basketball coach and former professional player, currently serving as an assistant coach for the LSU Tigers. A 5-star prospect in high school, Mitchell had a successful career at Denham ...

Garrett Temple Garrett Bartholomew Temple (born May 8, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the LSU Tigers from 2005 until 2009. An NBA jo ...

Tyrus Thomas Tyrus Wayne Thomas (born August 17, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Louisiana State University (LSU) before being drafted fourth overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2006 NBA dra ...

and

Darnell Lazare Darnell Lazare (born January 29, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player currently working as a player development coach for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball fo ...

). On November 26, 2005 Mitchell scored a game winner against

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

, and reached the 1,000 points mark. On January 28, 2006 he scored 28 points against Ole Miss, followed by 27 points against Auburn on February 1, and 27 against Arkansas on February 8; he also scored the game winner against Arkansas. LSU qualified for the 2006 NCAA tournament, and Mitchell opened his tournament with 19 points against

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...

on March 16. He then scored 16 against

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

, and he also made the game-winning three-pointer with 3.9 seconds left in the game. After beating

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, LSU lost to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

on April 1, with Mitchell scoring 8 points in 36 minutes. His 16.8 points per game for the season ranked him 4th in the SEC and second on the team behind Glen Davis. Mitchell's 1,322 minutes in 2005–06 were the 3rd best mark in a single season in LSU history. His 1,569 career points ranked 10th all-time at LSU when he retired, and he was the three-point field goals all-time leader with 258.

College statistics

, - , align="left" , 2002–03 , align="left" ,

, 32 , , 0 , , 19.8 , , .413 , , .424 , , .732 , , 2.2 , , 1.8 , , 1.4 , , 0.2 , , 7.0 , - , align="left" , 2003–04 , align="left" ,

, 29 , , 17 , , 30.4 , , .412 , , .419 , , .710 , , 2.8 , , 2.2 , , 1.7 , , 0.1 , , 11.9 , - , align="left" , 2004–05 , align="left" ,

, 30 , , 30 , , 35.0 , , .401 , , .364 , , .846 , , 2.6 , , 2.9 , , 1.8 , , 0.2 , , 13.1 , - , align="left" , 2005–06 , align="left" ,

, 36 , , 36 , , 36.7 , , .436 , , .394 , , .758 , , 3.7 , , 4.4 , , 1.9 , , 0.3 , , 16.8 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , , 127 , , 83 , , 30.6 , , .418 , , .396 , , .767 , , 2.9 , , 2.9 , , 1.7 , , 0.2 , , 12.4 , -

Professional career

After graduating from LSU, Mitchell was automatically eligible for the 2006 NBA draft, where he went undrafted. He then signed with

, a team of the

Turkish Basketball League Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

, and made his professional debut there. In the 2006–07 season he played 30 regular season games, averaging 13.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists; he also appeared in 5 playoff games, where he posted averages of 13 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists, shooting 44.4% from three. He was also named in the TBL Foreign All-Stars team. In September 2007 he joined

, a team in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

, and he had the chance to play in the Euroleague. In the 2007–08 edition he appeared in 7 games, averaging 2.4 points, 0.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists. After being released by Rytas, Mitchell signed with French Pro A team

Élan Chalon Élan Sportif Chalonnais, commonly known as Élan Chalon, is a French professional basketball club that is based in Chalon-sur-Saône, France. The team's main colors are red and white, and their mascot is a moose. The team's home arena is called ...

, and played 16 games in the French top league, averaging 13.5 points and 5.3 assists per game. He also appeared during the 2007–08 ULEB Cup with Chalon, and averaged 14.8 points and 7.8 assists over 4 games. In 2008 he joined

AEL Limassol Athlitiki Enosi Lemesou ( el, Αθλητική Ένωση Λεμεσού, translation=Athletic Union of Limassol) commonly known as AEL, is a Cypriot sports club based in the city of Limassol, most famous for its football team. AEL also maintain ...

, playing during the

2008–09 FIBA EuroChallenge The 2008–09 FIBA EuroChallenge was the sixth edition of Europe's third-tier level transnational men's professional club basketball FIBA EuroChallenge Tournament, and the first under the FIBA EuroChallenge name, organized by FIBA Europe. A tota ...

. In 19 games he averaged 10.7 points and 3.7 assists while shooting 39.3% from three. He also appeared in 9 games of the

Cyprus Basketball Division A The Cypriot Basketball Division A is currently the top-tier level men's professional basketball competition of the Cypriot basketball league system. It is run and governed by the Cyprus Basketball Federation. Format At present, six clubs compete ...

. For the following season he signed for Khimik of the

Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague The Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague (USL) ( uk, Українська баскетбольна суперліга) is the first-tier level of professional basketball league in Ukraine. Established in 1992, the league is currently contested by 10 c ...

, and he appeared in 25 games, averaging 17.7 points and 5.4 assists, with a 3-point field goal percentage of 42.4%. He then left in April 2010 and joined

B.C. Oostende Basketball Club Oostende, for sponsorship reasons Filou Oostende, is a Belgian professional basketball team. The club is based in Ostend and was founded in 1970. The club competes domestically in the BNXT League and internationally in the Baske ...

, appearing in 5 games of the

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

Pro Basketball League The Pro Basketball League (PBL), was the highest tier level professional basketball league in Belgium for clubs. In 2021, the league was succeeded by the Belgian-Dutch BNXT League. Through 2014, for sponsorship reasons, the league was previously ...

regular season, and then in 3 playoff games (10 points, 3.3 assists). He stayed with Oostende also for the 2010–11 season, during which he played 29 regular season games and 3 playoff games. He also took part in the

2010–11 FIBA EuroChallenge 2010–11 FIBA EuroChallenge was the eighth edition of Europe's third-tier level transnational men's professional club basketball FIBA EuroChallenge Tournament, organized by FIBA Europe. The Final Four was awarded to Oostende and was held from A ...

with the Belgian side. In 2011 he signed again with Khimik, and played a full SuperLeague season (37 games, 17.1 points and 6 assists per game), and appeared with the team during the

2011–12 FIBA EuroChallenge 2011–12 FIBA EuroChallenge was the eighth edition of Europe's third-tier level transnational men's professional club basketball FIBA EuroChallenge Tournament, organized by FIBA Europe. Teams The labels in the parentheses show how each team qu ...

. In 2012 he joined another Ukrainian team, Politekhnika-Halychyna, and stayed for one and a half season there. In December 2013 he transferred to

Donetsk Donetsk ( , ; uk, Донецьк, translit=Donets'k ; russian: Донецк ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin and Stalino (see also: Names of European cities in different languages (C–D), cities' alternat ...

, and over 5 games he averaged 9.4 points and 3.2 assists per game. He then left Ukraine in March 2014 and signed for

Pieno žvaigždės Pieno žvaigždės is one of the biggest dairy products companies group in Lithuania, uniting Mažeikiai dairy, Kaunas dairy, Pasvalys Pasvalys () is a town in Panevėžys County, Lithuania, located near the bank of the Svalia River. Histo ...

in Lithuania: he had a brief stint with the team (6 games in the LKL and 2 in the playoffs). He went back to France for the

2014–15 Pro A season The 2014–15 LNB Pro A season was the 93rd season of the French Basketball Championship and the 28th season since inception of the LNB. The season started on September 26, 2014 and ended on June 20, 2015. This season the number of teams was in ...

: he played 7 Pro A games with the team before moving to Pro B team

AS Monaco Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club SA, commonly referred to as AS Monaco () or Monaco, is a professional football club based in Monaco that is member of French Football Federation (FFF) and competes in Ligue 1, the top tier of Fre ...

, where he ended the season: in 26 appearances he averaged 14.2 points and 5.9 assists. Monaco gained the promotion to Pro A at the end of the year, and Mitchell stayed in Monaco, playing 21 games during the 2015–16 Pro A season. In 2016 Mitchell joined

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

side

Oettinger Rockets Rockets is a German professional basketball team. It is originally based in Gotha, Germany but plays its home games in Erfurt. The Rockets are the first team of the BiG Gotha basketball club. In 2017, Rockets promoted to the Basketball Bundesliga ...

: he played the first season in the

ProA Proas are various types of multi-hull outrigger sailboats of the Austronesian peoples. The terms were used for native Austronesian ships in European records during the Colonial era indiscriminately, and thus can confusingly refer to the do ...

, the second level of German basketball (9.1 points, 3.2 assists) and the second season in the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season ...

(11 games, 7.3 points, 3.3 assists per game). In 2018 he played 20 games in the

Russian Basketball Super League 1 The Russian Basketball Super League 1, or Super Liga 1, (russian: Баскетбольная Cуперлига 1), formerly known as the Russian Basketball Super League A or the Russian Basketball Super Liga A, is a men's professional basketball ...

, the second tier of Russian basketball, with

Spartak Primorye BC Spartak Primorye (russian: БК «Спартак-Приморье») is a Russian professional basketball club that is based in Vladivostok, Russia. It currently plays in the Russian Super League 1. Players Current roster No ...

, winning the league title.

References

External links