As we relayed earlier today, the Jazz reportedly spoke to the Knicks and Lakers a few weeks ago about the possibility of a three-team trade that would involved Donovan Mitchell and Russell Westbrook. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who reported those trade discussions, passed along several other Jazz-related tidbits in his latest roundup of rumors from around the NBA. Here are a few highlights:
- As they explore the trade market for Mitchell, the Jazz aren’t prioritizing win-now players at all, according to Scotto, who says the team is seeking as many first round draft picks as possible. After acquiring four future first round selections and 2022 first rounder Walker Kessler in the Rudy Gobert blockbuster, Utah is hoping to exceed that return by acquiring five or six first rounders for Mitchell, Scotto adds.
- The Knicks remain the frontrunners to land Mitchell, but they’ve been reluctant to give up the draft assets Utah is seeking, both in terms of quantity and quality, per Scotto. Besides debating the number of picks in a potential deal, the two teams have haggled over how many of them would be protected, and to what extent.
- Rival executives believes that if the Jazz move Mitchell, they’ll be in “fire sale” mode and more veterans will likely follow him out of town. Playoff-caliber teams are keeping a close eye on Bojan Bogdanovic and Patrick Beverley, says Scotto.
- While Mike Conley is also a trade candidate, his contract (two years, $47MM) makes him a longer shot to be moved in the near future, Scotto writes. Bogdanovic and Beverley, conversely, are on expiring deals.
Makes way more sense for a franchise like Utah to prioritize young, promising prospects that are still on their rookie contracts moreso than a bunch of future 1sts. This isn’t a franchise that tanks for extended periods. No fanbase loves to see their team tanking but the Jazz fanbase seems less amenable to tanking than pretty much any. Also they’re such a small market they can’t really afford to be having a bunch of empty seats in their arena, def not for multiple consecutive yrs. Prioritizing receiving young, inexpensive phenoms (like Franz Wagner & Jalen Suggs) while also acquiring a few future picks as well makes so much more sense than only focusing on getting as many picks as possible. This is obv different than trading over the hill legends like KG & Pierce. Donovan Mitchell will be in his prime throughout this decade & he doesn’t miss playoffs. Any 1sts they get for him are highly likely to be in the 20s
Johnny Davis, Deni Avdija, Isaiah Todd plus a few 1sts would be a good look too. Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson, AJ Griffin plus a few 1sts would be a good look. IQ, Obi, Grimes plus a few 1sts wouldn’t be bad but if I’m Utah they’d have to throw in an extra 1st to match what Orl, DC, Atl could offer
Orlando should try to do everything they can without losing Suggs
I like Suggs more than Cole but I sorta feel like Donovan & Paolo would fit better with Cole than Suggs. Especially at 1st bc Cole is a much better shooter rn. But personality wise & just overall I feel like Cole is a better fit for Orlando, for the fanbase & for the roster. I also very much believe that Utah would want Suggs more than Cole for numerous reasons. Suggs personality is way better fitted for Utah than Cole’s. Plus Suggs has an extra yr if team control & frankly projects to be the better overall player (ever so slightly). If I’m Orlando I def wouldn’t mind keeping Suggs & trading Cole instead tho. But the fact that they have so many options is a main reason I think Orlando is the perfect trade partner for Utah in a potential trade
I still think they should mostly hold for now, and try to move Clarkson and Conley. They have Beverley to replace Conley, and Conley should still have value b/c he is still a high level 2 way PG. If they can do that, I think they’re in strong position, assuming they can get back at least 1 useful piece in the combined deals of moving those 2, and then their cap situation looks a lot better moving forward, and their team isnt bad for this year either, if they add the right piece or 2/stay healthy. I wouldn’t move Bigdanovic just yet, especially if I’m keeping Mitchell
If you move Mitchell, than obviously, moving Bogdanovic and others makes the most sense, but I dont think it’s time to move him yet
No one is paying Conley that salary
I gotta disagree about Conley having much/any trade value. I’d love to see him go back home & play for the Pacers to give Carlisle & co help coaching up the young guards & esp to be a mentor to Haliburton. Indy has the space to take him but they def not giving up much value for him. He’d be nice addition for most contenders but much moreso as a vet min pickup if/when he gets bought out. As far as Clarkson, if they’re not gonna trade Spida & they are gonna try to win games & get back to the playoffs then they def shouldn’t trade Clarkson either. This isn’t a team with a lot of scoring options. Having Beasley helps a lil but Clarkson is basically a slightly better version of Beasley.
I could see that happening. What they give back would depend on if the Jazz are planning to retool at this point?
Could do a Myles Turner for Conley swap? Then the Jazz successfully replace Gobert, to a degree. Gives Kessler a mentor and more time to develop, too. If it doesn’t work or if the Jazz still want to go young they can trade the remaining vets next Summer or at the trade deadline.
Idk why Indy would trade Myles at all, much less for an overpaid backup pg with (maybe) 1 season left in him. Most I’d give up for Conley if I’m Indy is a 2nd rd pick & it would take some convincing even for that.
Conley is the same age as Durant. He just had a down year because of the team’s chaos. The Jazz could still keep him and I’m sure he’d be fine. Just needs to be more assertive this year.
Lol man we both know Conley & KD are on 2 very different levels. Also Conley is a yr older than KD. I do agree Conley will be just fine on Utah or whatever team he plays on this season tho. But it’s still true that he’d def be an overpaid backup in Indy & he’s def not worth trading Myles for. I wouldn’t mind him coming to my Hawks if/when he gets bought out. Though tbh I’d rather just bring back Lou Williams
True, but Conley doesn’t currently have a repaired Achilles. That’s literally the worst injury in basketball. Conley’s had injuries to his heel, a minor back issue, and a hamstring. The rest are just minor. The hamstring wasn’t an issue this year because he started doing Yoga last Summer.
I think the issue with Conley is that he’s never been a hyper guy. He’s always pretty calm and moves deliberately. Plus, I think he can be too nice. The guy needs to be more aggressive. Problem is I don’t think he wants to risk an injury. He’s seen what other guys have gone through his age and older.
As for his contract, he’s guaranteed $22.6M this year. Next year is only guaranteed $14.3M until 48 hours after the draft. He could be waived after this season and the cap hit wouldn’t be as bad.
If the Jazz end up keeping him then I’d suspect they keep Beverly and split the PG playing time. If they trade him then it’s more up in the air what they do with Beverly. I kinda want to see what this team can do first.
Conley was good last year…he had a down year his first year in Utah, but has been very good since. I think teams like Brooklyn, Dallas, New Orleans could use him. I totally disagree with those saying he has no value. It is a bit difficult to find teams that need guard help, but those are teams that need it, and he is still one of the better 2 way actual PGs in the league
I think its Clarkson that doesnt have much value
Mike actually had a good year. He had a poor playoff with Dallas.
Conley is an underwater contract today
Jazz franchise is screwed
Lol I’m sure your nickname back home is “sunshine”? =)
BTW, you’re way off. This isn’t the first time they’ve transitioned and transformed. I’d recommend laying off the sugar so you’ll have enough patience to see what they do. =) Lol
They’re far from “screwed”. Ever since Stockton retired the Jazz have been transitioning every 5-7 years. They draft a guy like Deron Williams, Gordon Hayward or in this case Mitchell. They build around them and are in the mix of near contenders for a few years then the cycle starts again.
A three team trade makes alot of sense now that it’s looking like the Nets won’t give up Irving to the Lakers so fast;
NYk get Mitchell
LAL get Fournier, Bogdanovic, Reddish
UTA get Westbrook. Toppin, Grimes and a boatload of picks from both teams
Why is Bojan involved in the trade?
The Lakers have shown they’re not willing to give up anything of value in trades. They don’t seem to think taking on one of the largest salaries in history is worth more than 1 first round pick. Then you expect the Jazz to give them Bojan as well? Never going to happen.
Lakers are the ones that messed up. Others teams need more incentive to bail them out.
Jazz would have to send out atleast one of Bog or Conley to stay under the tax getting Westbrook. I think Conley has another year left on his contract after this one, I don’t think the Lakers would want to take on that salary.
If that’s true then the Jazz need to get Bojan’s trade value back. Like many have been saying, the Lakers will just keep on trying to send out their same weak package out, but nobody wants that. They’ll need more.
I remember when the Jazz took a large $~16M contract from the Warriors so they could sign Igoudala, I believe it was. The Jazz got the player, a first round pick and a couple second round picks. Westbrook’s contract is 3x worse! You tell me what that trade should look like?
LA messed up getting rid of Kuzma. Any team with LeBron over his career has lost all draft capital strapped finances and if he sees a better chance somewhere else he leaves. If I’m LA I’d trade LeBron…. oooooo I said it
I like the idea of Mitchell for Westbrook and trash
It’s good for Jazz because Jazz would have receive 10 first round picks on just one deal
2 from Lakers and
2 from 4th team and
6 from Knicks
Stoppppp saying the Knicks are the front runners!! They aren’t paying that price tag. It’s just ignorant reporting
Mitchell wants NY. And tanking is what you do when you go full rebuild. At least 2-3 yrs of picks. What’s wrong with that. No young player is going to take you anywhere first 2-3 yrs. Unless his name is Lew Alcindor.
Worst three teams next yr. Have a shot at next great Center. The draft is deep. And great for worst 5 teams. It’s called common sense.
Mitchell is coming to NY. It’s over …….
It’s all about holding out for a better deal. For both teams actually. Grimes, Quickley are better than any player they got for Rudy. Randle can even be moved for younger players, picks. DM wants to go home. So it will get done. Just do t want to overpay for him. And really I’m good with waiting till Jan 15. When more players will be available. Mitchell is gone ………
Grimes hasn’t proven anything yet. Beverly and Beasley are both better than IQ or Grimes. That could change this upcoming year, but that’s speculation, just like everything you’ve said.
What we do know for sure is that Donovan is under contract for several years. The Jazz literally don’t have to do anything this year. They have been entertaining offers and letting Don know about it.
However, they don’t appear to be serious because they haven’t moved on their price. That tells me that they don’t really want to trade him. Curious how Donovan hasn’t said anything about it all Summer. Maybe he doesn’t want to make his NY fans mad when he leaves to go back home to Utah.
Of course, the Jazz could trade him at any point. I just haven’t seen a true scenario the Jazz have acted differently towards. Look at the Minnesota trade. The Jazz and Wolves got that done super fast! Both were motivated to get a deal done. I haven’t seen anything remotely close to that since. Maybe these new offers will come closer but that’s not looking likely.
I still get the feeling they might hold onto him until next Summer. There’s more trade options available and draft options. Mitchell could help them get players they actually want and not have to settle for, which is what they’d be doing for those NY players.
However, a possible scenario that NY fans need to prepare for, is the Jazz retool around Donovan and make side trades for players on his same timetable. Just look at Fonntecchio. They’ll both be 26 this season.