Jared Butler Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jazz Notes: Mitchell, Butler, Snyder, Paschall

May 5th, 2022 at 10:59am CST by Luke Adams

The 2022 offseason will be the most important of Donovan Mitchell‘s career so far, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic. As Jones writes, the Jazz‘s first-round loss to Dallas showed that Mitchell needs to become more stout defensively and must continue to improve his decision-making with the ball in his hands.

While Mitchell had another strong season in 2021/22, the Jazz will need him to take one more leap on both ends of the courts if they want to become true title contenders, says Jones, noting that the 25-year-old himself seems to recognize as much.

“I wasn’t where I wanted to be this year,” Mitchell said after Utah’s season ended. “And there were times this year when the ball rolled out that we didn’t show that we wanted to be a team with championship aspirations. … I’m looking forward to working on my game all summer, and getting into the gym. I’m looking forward to putting the work in.”

Here’s more out of Utah:

After helping Baylor win the national championship in 2021, Jared Butler didn’t have much of a role for the Jazz as a rookie, averaging 3.8 PPG and 1.5 APG in 42 games (8.6 MPG). However, Butler left his exit meeting with the team feeling optimistic that he’ll have more opportunities in 2022/23, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News.
Jazz head coach Quin Snyder underwent hip replacement surgery this week, per the team (Twitter link via Tim MacMahon of ESPN). The procedure had originally been set for June, but Snyder decided to get it done sooner rather than later.
Ryan Kostecka of UtahJazz.com takes a look at what’s next for some of Utah’s reserves, including Nickeil Alexander-Walker and restricted free agents like Eric Paschall and Trent Forrest. Paschall said his offseason goal is to improve his outside shooting. “I would love to become a 40% three-point shooter,” said the forward, who made 37.0% of his threes in 2021/22 after hitting just 30.1% in his first two NBA seasons.

Jazz Notes: Wade, Gobert, Mitchell, Butler

March 8th, 2022 at 7:37am CST by Luke Adams

As a part of the Jazz‘s ownership group, Dwyane Wade views it as one of his responsibilities to improve the experience for players and to narrow the “disconnect” between the people in the locker room and the people running the team, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic writes.

Wade acknowledged that his input into basketball operations decisions is fairly limited for the time being, but he hopes to eventually take on a larger role as he gets more comfortable in his position in the front office.

“My name is probably bigger than the piece I have,” Wade told The Athletic. “As I’m trying to learn this space, I’ll hopefully one day be more involved. But right now I’m sitting back and I’m learning from (general manager) Justin Zanik, I’m learning from (CEO) Danny Ainge, and (team owner) Ryan (Smith) is as well.

“I don’t want that responsibility of trading a guy or signing a guy. That’s not my role. I don’t want anybody thinking that’s my role. My role is to give my perspective if asked. If I feel like, ‘Hey, what are we doing on this and that, these are the players that I see, that I like.’ And things about these players. Just conversations that anybody would have. But I don’t make the decisions. I’m not the decision-maker.”

Here’s more on the Jazz:

All-Star center Rudy Gobert thought the referees in Monday’s game in Dallas let the Mavericks‘ bench get away with comments that crossed a line, as Sarah Todd of The Deseret News relays. “There were a lot of things being said that wouldn’t be said outside of a basketball court,” Gobert said. “A lot of things that I would never say. I’m not perfect but I don’t say things to guys on the court that I wouldn’t say to their face outside the locker room.” The Jazz and Mavs will play again in Dallas later this month, and could face each other in the postseason — they currently hold the fourth and fifth spots in the West.
Tony Jones of The Athletic, in considering the Jazz’s long-term future, envisions the team eventually moving Donovan Mitchell to the point guard role on a full-time basis. If and when Mitchell assumes that role, Utah would probably want to complement him with a secondary creator and with a couple long, athletic wings who can shoot, Jones suggests. Mike Conley, the team’s current point guard, is under contract for two more seasons beyond this one, though his 2023/24 salary isn’t fully guaranteed.
A Louisiana native, Jazz rookie Jared Butler got his first opportunity to play an NBA game in New Orleans last Friday night, logging seven minutes of mop-up time in Utah’s blowout loss to the Pelicans. Speaking to local media, Butler discussed the challenges he has faced this season during a transition period. “This year has been interesting, because it’s brand-new for me,” Butler said, per Rod Walker of NOLA.com. “The coolest thing is I get to learn right now. That’s been a change of pace for me going from playing 30 minutes a night in college to just sitting and learning. So that’s been an adjustment. But there’s also just been the adjustment to the NBA lifestyle.”

COVID-19 Updates: Grizzlies, Doumbouya, Oubre, Pistons, More

January 19th, 2022 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies now have a league-high four players in the NBA’s health and safety protocols. When they updated their injury report on Tuesday for Wednesday’s game vs. Milwaukee, the Grizzlies removed Yves Pons from the protocols, but added key contributors Kyle Anderson and Desmond Bane (Twitter link). Big man Killian Tillie also remains in the protocols for Memphis, and point guard Tyus Jones was added today (Twitter link).

While the Grizzlies shouldn’t have to wait too long to get some of their players back from the protocols, they’ll likely be shorthanded on the wing for their next few games, with Anderson and Bane both unavailable and Dillon Brooks (ankle) still on the shelf too.

Here are a few more protocol-related updates:

Lakers two-way forward Sekou Doumbouya entered the COVID-19 protocols on Tuesday, according to the team (Twitter link via Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group). Doumbouya had been in the G League with South Bay, so his absence won’t have a major impact on the NBA club.
Hornets forward Kelly Oubre and Pistons guard Frank Jackson are among the players to have exited the protocols this week, according to their respective teams (Twitter links). Jackson missed Tuesday’s game vs. Golden State due to reconditioning, while Oubre is listed as questionable for Wednesday’s contest in Boston.
Pistons rookie Luka Garza, who was on a G League assignment, had his status changed to “health and safety protocols” on Tuesday night’s injury report. Meanwhile, this morning’s injury reports no longer list Jazz guard Jared Butler or Kings wing Robert Woodard, an indication that both players have cleared the protocols.
Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley and top assistant Nate Tibbetts both entered the protocols on Monday, resulting in assistant Jesse Mermuys taking over on a temporary basis as Orlando’s acting head coach, per the team (Twitter link).

Northwest Notes: Lillard, Blazers, Jazz, J. Green, Wolves

January 10th, 2022 at 1:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard isn’t traveling with the team on its upcoming six-game road trip, which will begin on Thursday in Denver, head coach Chauncey Billups said on Sunday. As Sean Highkin of Bleacher Report tweets, the plan is for Lillard to meet with a specialist to determine the next steps to treat his lower abdominal tendinopathy.

In a full article for Bleacher Report, Highkin says not to be surprised if the Trail Blazers decide to shut down Lillard for an extended period, perhaps even the rest of the season.

As Highkin explains, that would be a logical route to take for a 15-24 Portland team that hasn’t met expectations in the first half of the season. Lillard’s long-term health is the most important factor in the Trail Blazers’ future, so taking the time to get him back to 100% makes sense — and could put the Blazers in position to secure a lottery pick in 2022. Portland owes its 2022 first-rounder to Chicago, but only if it lands outside of the top 14.

Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer explores the subject in his latest article as well, contending that it’s time for the Trail Blazers to reset. In O’Connor’s view, it would be in the team’s best interests to hang onto Lillard and youngsters Anfernee Simons and Nassir Little while shopping Jusuf Nurkic, Robert Covington, and even CJ McCollum.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Danuel House, who is on a 10-day contract with the Jazz, made a case on Friday for a longer-term deal with the team, scoring 13 points and handing out four assists, as Sarah Todd of The Deseret News details. Utah has two openings on its 15-man roster, so there’s an opportunity for House if he can take advantage of it. He went scoreless in 13 minutes during his second game with Utah on Saturday.
The Jazz got forward Joe Ingles back from out of the NBA’s health and safety protocols today, tweets Tony Jones of The Athletic. However, rookie Jared Butler and big man Udoka Azubuike have both entered the protocols, per Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter links), so Utah now has five players affected.
Nuggets forward Jeff Green is thrilled to still be playing in the NBA 10 years after he underwent open-heart surgery in 2012, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. “A lot of GMs, a lot of teams told me I wouldn’t even make it past five (years in the NBA),” Green told Singer. “To be here (at) 10, I’m just blessed, man. I’m thankful … and I’m glad they told me that.”
Karl-Anthony Towns has liked what he’s seen from this year’s Timberwolves, who are currently in a play-in spot with a 20-20 record. “You’re seeing a maturation of a young team finding their own,” Towns said on Sunday, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link). “I think everyone in the NBA is seeing an identity being built in Minnesota, something I think has been lacking in this organization for a long, long time.”

Jazz Notes: Gobert, Ingles, Mitchell, Whiteside, Butler, Wade

November 12th, 2021 at 11:45am CST by Luke Adams

Jazz center Rudy Gobert and Pacers center Myles Turner engaged in a skirmish during Thursday’s game in Utah, briefly wrestling with one another after getting tangled up following a Gobert drive (video link).

As Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune details, the incident resulted in ejections for Gobert and Turner, as well as for Joe Ingles and Donovan Mitchell. Ingles was ejected for shoving referee Ed Malloy while trying to break up the fight; Mitchell was said to be “acting as an instigator and escalating the situation.” It’s unclear if any players will face suspensions as a result of the incident, but fines, at least, seem likely.

After the game, Mitchell and Gobert were focused more on the way the game was being officiated than concerns about forthcoming penalties. Gobert said referees are “allowing guys to do way too much s–t” this season and Mitchell agreed.

“It’s really at a point now, especially tonight, where the referees are allowing things to get out of hand,” Mitchell said, per Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. “Both teams, we’re competitors and we’ll play through contact and talk s–t and do whatever. But at some point it’s continuing to build and you can sense that.”

Here’s more out of Utah:

Hassan Whiteside has been a great fit so far as the Jazz’s second-string center, Todd writes for The Deseret News. According to Todd, the veteran big man – who has been accused in the past of looking to pad his own stats – has embraced the team-first philosophy in Utah. “It’s so cool how close this team is, I haven’t been on a team that’s this close,” Whiteside said. “A lot of people say, ‘Hey we’re close team, hey we do this together.’ Nah. This is really like a close-knit group. It’s great. I love it.”
Rookie guard Jared Butler can expect to bounce back and forth between the NBA and the G League this season, as Todd outlines in a separate story for The Deseret News. The veteran-heavy Jazz won’t be making it a top priority to develop their young prospects at the NBA level, so Butler, Udoka Azubuike, and Elijah Hughes could all see reps for the Salt Lake City Stars when they’re not part of Utah’s rotation, says general manager Justin Zanik.
Dwyane Wade‘s position as a part-owner of the Jazz hasn’t diminished his Heat fandom, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. Wade said he still “loves” his old team and would be rooting for them to win a championship if the Jazz don’t. “Miami, from a personal standpoint, I would love to see them win it all,” he said. “But I also would love to see us win it all. So, for me, it’s a win-win.”

Northwest Notes: Butler, Gay, Zeller, Palacio

October 7th, 2021 at 8:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jared Butler has been the talk of the Jazz‘s training camp but he’ll have to exercise patience when it comes to playing time, Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune writes. The 40th pick of the draft won’t immediately take backcourt minutes away from Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley, Jordan Clarkson or Joe Ingles.

“For Jared, part of it is patience. You can be really competitive and hungry, and still be patient,” coach Quin Snyder said. “When I say ‘patience,’ it’s a little bit like preparing for when an opportunity presents itself for you to have an impact. … Invariably there’s injuries, there’s foul trouble. Continuing to work and be hungry and not be frustrated if it doesn’t come right away [is important].”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Jazz forward Rudy Gay underwent offseason surgery on his right heel, Walden tweets. It was previously reported that the surgery was done on his left heel. Gay is still working his way back from the surgery and isn’t expected to be ready for opening night.
Trail Blazers center Cody Zeller will undergo nasal surgery on Friday, Jason Quick of The Athletic tweets. Zeller was inadvertently hit in the face by the Warriors’ Andre Iguodala in Monday’s preseason opener. Doctors tried to reset it, but his nose was “crushed,” according to coach Chauncey Billups. It’s uncertain whether the injury will affect Zeller’s status for the regular season.
Trail Blazers assistant coach Milt Palacio has been placed under administrative leave by the team pending further notice, according to a team statement relayed by Quick (Twitter link). He is one of 18 former players facing charges in New York federal court over allegations that they defrauded the NBA’s health and welfare benefit plan.

Jazz Sign Second-Rounder Jared Butler

August 12th, 2021 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz have signed guard Jared Butler, according to a team press release.

According to Priority Sports, Butler’s agency, it’s a two-year guaranteed deal (Twitter link). Utah used its full taxpayer mid-level exception on Rudy Gay, leaving just the minimum salary exception for Butler — that means he was limited to no more than two years at the minimum.

Butler was acquired from the Pelicans in a draft-night deal. It was folded into part of a larger three-team deal.

Butler was a key component for national champion Baylor, averaging 16.7 PPG, 4.8 APG, 3.3 RPG and 2.0 SPG while shooting 41.6% from 3-point range as a junior. He had 22 points and seven assists in the title game against Gonzaga and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

Northwest Notes: Wolves, Lillard, Jazz, Butler

August 7th, 2021 at 6:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas is urging fans to be patient after the team’s slow start to free agency, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Minnesota hasn’t made any significant additions since the signing period began on Monday, but Rosas said the plan is to keep the core of the team intact and try to build on the momentum from late last season. The Wolves had a .500 record over their final 22 games.

“We just want to see this team come together,” he said. “As well as this team played down the stretch last year, we didn’t have Malik Beasley available because of injury. This group, the value of continuity, the value of growth together and just repetition together as a team, we’re excited about what that growth might mean.”

The immediate concern will be keeping restricted free agents Jarred Vanderbilt and Jordan McLaughlin, Krawczynski adds. Both are facing a market where teams are left with limited resources and limited roster spots. Rosas spoke to them and their agents shortly after the signing period began.

Head coach Chris Finch foresees an expanded role for both players if they return. McLaughlin may become the primary backup at point guard now that Ricky Rubio is on the way to Cleveland, while Vanderbilt is one of the team’s most versatile defenders.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard helped Team USA capture a gold medal despite playing with an abdominal injury, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. He will require further testing once he returns from Tokyo. Lillard, who was determined to keep playing despite the injury, logged 27 minutes and scored 11 points in Friday’s gold medal game.
The Jazz were shopping for versatility in this year’s free agent market, per Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. General manager Justin Zanik said that’s what the team was lacking in the playoffs, which is why it pursued Rudy Gay and Hassan Whiteside, while trading for Eric Paschall and rookie Jared Butler. Zanik added that he’s likely done with significant moves for the offseason, and Walden points out that means Joe Ingles will probably remain with the team.
The Jazz won’t have Butler as part of their Summer League squad, Walden adds. The rookie had a health issue during the pre-draft process and hasn’t been in a contact setting for a long time. Zanik said management might have let him play if the games were “10 days later,” but they opted to be safe.

Grizzlies Acquire No. 30 Pick Santi Aldama From Jazz

August 7th, 2021 at 12:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

AUGUST 7: The draft-night trade between the Jazz and Grizzlies is now complete, per a team release from Memphis. The two teams had to wait until the Grizzlies officially acquired the rights to No. 40 pick Jared Butler from New Orleans before they could officially complete this deal.

As detailed below, the final trade is the Grizzlies receiving Almada’s draft rights in exchange for the rights to Butler and two future second-round picks. Those second-rounders heading to Utah are Memphis’ own selections in 2022 and 2026, per Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter link).

JULY 29: The Jazz will send the 30th pick to the Grizzlies, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Memphis will select Loyola Maryland forward Santi Aldama, Woj adds (via Twitter).

Utah will receive the 40th pick and two future second-rounders in return, according to Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (Twitter link). The 40th pick was part of a trade with the Pelicans earlier this week that won’t become official until the moratorium ends.

The Grizzlies believed the Thunder were targeting Aldama in the second round, so they thought they had to trade up ahead of the 34-36 range to make sure he didn’t go to OKC, tweets Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated.

The 6’11” Aldama turned down an invitation to the combine and didn’t conduct any publicly-known workouts before the draft, notes Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Aldama said he preferred to play in his native Spain and discouraged teams from drafting him. That led many people around the league to believe he had a promise from somebody, and Memphis likely shut him down several months ago.

Pelicans Officially Acquire Valanciunas, Graham In Three-Team Trade

August 7th, 2021 at 9:28am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans have officially announced a pair of previously–reported trades, having combined their acquisitions of center Jonas Valanciunas and point guard Devonte’ Graham into a single transaction involving both the Grizzlies and Hornets. Memphis and Charlotte have put out press releases as well.

The details of the three-team deal are as follows:

To Pelicans:
- Valanciunas (from Grizzlies)
- Graham (sign-and-trade; from Hornets)
- The draft rights to Trey Murphy (No. 17 pick; from Grizzlies)
- The draft rights to Brandon Boston (No. 51 pick; from Grizzlies)
  - Note: Boston will be rerouted to the Clippers in a subsequent trade.
To Grizzlies:
- Eric Bledsoe (from Pelicans)
- Steven Adams (from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Ziaire Williams (No. 10 pick; from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Jared Butler (No. 40 pick; from Pelicans)
  - Note: Butler will be rerouted to the Jazz in a subsequent trade.
- The Lakers’ 2022 first-round pick (top-10 protected; from Pelicans)
To Hornets:
- Wesley Iwundu (from Pelicans)
- The Pelicans’ 2022 first-round pick (top-14 protected; from Pelicans)
  - Note: If the Pelicans’ 2022 first-rounder falls in the top 14, the Hornets will instead receive New Orleans’ 2022 and 2024 second-round picks, per Rod Boone of SI.com.
- Cash (from Pelicans)
- The draft rights to Tyler Harvey (from Grizzlies)

The details of the three-team trade essentially line up with what was previously reported, with two new pieces added — Iwundu going from New Orleans to Charlotte and Harvey’s draft rights going from Memphis to Charlotte. Harvey was presumably only included to ensure that the Grizzlies and Hornets were “touching,” since otherwise Memphis would only have been exchanging assets with the Pelicans.

Looping their sign-and-trade acquisition of Graham into the trade suggests the Pelicans will operate over the cap, using Bledsoe’s and Adams’ outgoing salaries in order to match both Valanciunas and Graham instead of signing Graham into cap space.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), it also allows New Orleans to generate a $17MM+ trade exception in the deal. Only Bledsoe’s and Iwundu’s outgoing salaries are needed for matching purposes to take on Valanciunas and Graham, meaning the Pelicans’ new TPE is worth Adams’ salary ($17,073,171).

Graham reportedly signed a four-year, $47MM contract with the Pelicans as part of the trade. He and Tomas Satoransky appear set to play the majority of the minutes at point guard in New Orleans, barring further roster changes. The team is sending Lonzo Ball to Chicago in a separate sign-and-trade deal.

Graham made just 37.7% of his field goal attempts in 2020/21, but his three-point mark was a very respectable 37.5%. In addition to his ability to make threes, Graham is an above-average play-maker (6.5 APG over the last two seasons) and a respectable defender.

Swapping out Adams for Valanciunas should allow the Pelicans to improve their frontcourt spacing. Valanciunas isn’t exactly a long-distance marksman, but has a solid mid-range game and will shoot the occasional three-pointer, which should create more room for Zion Williamson to operate. The former No. 5 overall pick averaged an impressive 17.1 PPG and 12.5 RPG with a .592/.368/.773 shooting line in 62 games (28.3 MPG) this past season.

From the Grizzlies’ perspective, the deal was a way to improve their draft assets in both 2021 and 2022 as a result of their willingness to take on Adams’ and Bledsoe’s pricey contracts. The team moved up from No. 17 to No. 10 to snag Williams, and later flipped the No. 40 pick (Butler) to Utah in a separate trade to move up to No. 30 for Santi Aldama.

[RELATED: 2021 NBA Offseason Trades]

The Hornets, meanwhile, decided to move on from Graham and got a protected first-round pick from New Orleans in exchange for waiving their right to match an offer sheet for the restricted free agent. Iwundu’s guaranteed $1.82MM salary for 2021/22 will eat up a small amount of Charlotte’s cap room, but the team will still have enough flexibility to complete its signing of Kelly Oubre to a two-year deal in the range of $12-13MM per year.