Report: Celtics Rookie Dillon Mitchell Could Return to College Basketball

The Celtics stood surprised that Dillon Mitchell, a prospect they long coveted, fell to No. 40 overall in the NBA Draft and already began developing his jump shot last month at Summer League. A tweak in his release point allowed him to surpass his total threes made from all of last season at St. John’s in just three games in Las Vegas.

Now, a federal court ruling that allows Class of 2022 players to join in a decision that allowed players a fifth college season could set up Mitchell’s return to St. John’s. According to Adam Zagoria, that’s being considered for the Johnnies’ final roster spot alongside Keyshawn Hall, a 23-year-old forward who last played for Auburn.

Mitchell joined St. John’s after beginning his college career playing two seasons for Texas before transferring to Cincinnati. He averaged 8.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game last year in St. John’s, reaching the Sweet 16 and losing 80-75 to Duke. Mitchell praised his experience playing for head coach Rick Pitino, and drew parallels between the hard-nosed mentality he and fellow rookie Chris Cenac Jr. acquired last year playing for Pitino and Houston coach Kelvon Sampson, respectively.

“We didn’t really have a true point guard last year, so in practice, he saw me rebound the ball, push it, try to make plays,” Mitchell said in June. “I’m a very selfless person. I don’t care about me scoring that much. I care about just winning. So especially with teams like Boston, you got all these scorers, it’s not about me, it’s about getting other guys going and doing all the little things. So I think him seeing me do it at practice so much, making plays and being very selfless, it’s something he really wanted me to show in games and it helped us a lot as a team.”

If Mitchell, who hasn’t signed a contract with the Celtics, plays for St. John’s in 2026-27, the NBA CBA leaves some ambiguity over whether they would retain his draft rights. Typically, if a player spent one or numerous seasons playing for a club overseas as a draft-and-stash prospect, the team that selects them in the NBA Draft would indefinitely maintain their draft rights, which they could move or use to sign that player to a contract later. James Nnaji became the first significant case like Mitchell’s, the former No. 31 pick to the Hornets began his overseas before Charlotte traded his rights to New York and Nnaji left Barcelona to play for Baylor. The Knicks maintain Nnaji’s rights as he explores a transfer from Baylor.

Charles Bediako, who signed a two-way professional contract with the Spurs, failed in his legal push to play for Alabama after appearing in five games with the Crimson Tide when the court’s protection for his proceedings expired and the NCAA denied his motion to play out the season. The federal court ruling that could free Mitchell from similar scrutiny followed the NCAA’s approval of a five-for-five rule that allows five years of eligibility across five seasons, eliminating redshirts and waivers, whenever a player’s college basketball eligibility clock begins. U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney applied that rule to players from the Class of 2022 like Mitchell, who “will suffer irreparable harm without” it. The NCAA plans to appeal the ruling.

“The court’s decision to certify a nationwide class and grant sweeping injunctive relief with virtually no evidence, and without witness testimony or even so much as a hearing, invites further chaos in college sports and irreparably harms thousands of student-athletes already on campus,” Scott Bearby of the NCAA wrote.

The NBA’s CBA also invites some uncertainty over Mitchell’s future status. The league allows for players to participate in as many as two NBA Drafts, should the initial team lose its exclusive rights by not offering the required tender, a one-year contract, by a required date. Mitchell could, through that route, become eligible for the 2027 NBA Draft. It’s likely that the Celtics would execute the requirements to maintain his rights, at least a one-year, minimum contract at some point in the two weeks prior to Sept. 5, but Mitchell can decline to sign that and enter the subsequent draft, according to the CBA. He and the Celtics would need to negotiate a deal prior. Draft-and-stash player rights are differentiated by their professional contracts in a different league.

That leaves Mitchell’s likelihood of returning up to the motivation of both sides to get a deal done. Mitchell’s rookie minimum salary of $1.4-million fits under the luxury tax threshold, though Keith Smith on Celtics Daily indicated that Boston expects to leave its final roster spot open as it often does. A two-way slot pays $678,882, half of that aforementioned minimum deal. Mitchell could also be waived at any time and lose the remaining balance at that point. An NIL calculator placed his value at somewhere between $900,000-$2,000,000 playing for St. John’s.

Other unsigned draft selections from this past year who could similarly return to college include Knicks guard Tyler Nickel, Grizzlies wing Richie Saunders, Pacers selection Braedon Smith and the Warriors’ LaJae Jones.

“There was certainly maneuvering going around like there is most years, but we were reasonably focused on Dillon, and it was exciting that he was there for us at 40,” Celtics executive Mike Zarren said after June’s second round, revealing that Boston considered trading up for Mitchell.

The Celtics have former second-round pick Amari Williams and training camp invites Milos Uzan and Tucker DeVries in play for two-way contracts after agreeing to training camp contracts. Former two-way wing John Tonje left the team for a two-way contract with the Portland Trail Blazers earlier this month.