Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Royce O’Neale was a little confused.
The Jazz forward had just been asked what he thought of Donovan Mitchell getting a bridge named after him, but there was a slight problem: He hadn't yet heard of this bridge.
"What? A bridge?,” O’Neale said before laughing. “Where is it? I'll go drive on it. I don’t know nothing about it. Can they put 'P.S. Royce O'Neale, too'? I mean I'm basically Donovan.
"Nah, that's great," he continued. "He's a great player, great person outside of basketball — as you can see, the things he does before the game, gives kids his shoes. He deserves it."
O’Neale likely won’t be driving on the bridge any time soon. But he could take a stroll on it.
The Gateway renamed the pedestrian walking bridge that goes over 100 South as the Donovan Mitchell Bridge on Tuesday. The bridge features a mural of Mitchell created by Salt Lake City artists Jared Andr Smith and Chuck Landvatter.
And to be fair to O’Neale, Mitchell's own reaction to the bridge’s new name was pretty similar. Speaking at the dedication ceremony, Mitchell expressed his disbelief about the whole thing.
“It’s humbling,” Mitchell said. “Knowing where I came from, I didn’t expect to be in the NBA, let alone win the dunk contest, let alone make the playoffs, let alone be where we are today in our playoff position — and I have a bridge named after me. I can’t comprehend that.”
David Larcher, president of Vestar, the owner of The Gateway, said the renaming of the bridge was another step toward the revitalization of the outdoor mall that lies just to the west of Vivint Arena.
“We are spending over $100 million to rejuvenate, revitalize and transform it back into a point of pride for the community here in Salt Lake,” Larcher said.
Part of that money is being invested in art projects like the mural featured on the newly named bridge.
And when it came to choosing to rename the bridge after the Jazz guard, Larcher said that he thought “it would be strange to not acknowledge the star power of our neighbor to the east.”
As for Mitchell, it was an honor — and one that he doesn’t take lightly. He knows he has set a high standard for himself both on and off the court, and he’s planning on meeting that standard moving forward.
“This isn’t the last of it,” Mitchell said. “There’s going to be a lot more things that I pride myself doing in this community.”
And that includes a long playoff run this season.
“It's going to be a fun two months,” he said before correcting himself. “Three months. We are playing into June.”
