Utah politician files resolution to honor Jazz's Mitchell over Shaq

Utah state Rep. Kera Birkeland is coming to Donovan Mitchell's defense after his awkward exchange with Shaquille O'Neal.

The "Inside the NBA" crew was interviewing the Jazz guard following Utah's win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday when O'Neal told him he doesn't "have what it takes to get to that next level." Mitchell brushed off the comment with an "Aight," but the criticism appears to have struck a nerve with Birkeland, who introduced a resolution Monday honoring Mitchell over O'Neal.

The resolution states, "In Utah, we support our players when they face awkward abuse during post-game interviews disguised as pep talks." It goes on to highlight Mitchell's efforts on and off the court while taking multiple shots at O'Neal:

WHEREAS, the claim by Shaquille O'Neal (Shaq) on January 21, 2021, that Utah Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell Jr. (Donovan) doesn't have what it takes to get to the next level is even less accurate than his 50.4% playoff free-throw percentage (slightly worse than Donovan's 88.1%);

WHEREAS, the Jazz eliminated Shaq and the Los Angeles Lakers from the playoffs in 1997 (4-1) and 1998 (4-0);

WHEREAS, we are not talking about 2000, 2001, 2002, or 2006 right now, the years in which Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers and Dwayne Wade's Miami Heat won championships for Shaq;

WHEREAS, Kazaam has a 5% rating on rotten tomatoes;

WHEREAS, Shaq under-develops his hot takes almost as well as his 1990's "Shaq Fu" video game

Birkeland confirmed to TMZ Sports that the resolution is "100 percent real."

"I can tell you that so many players in our state were disheartened that even at the NBA level you're still getting marginalized," she said. "(Mitchell's response) is a battle cry that every athlete in our state should get behind."