Utah Jazz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jarrell Brantley Accepts Qualifying Offer From Jazz

August 8th, 2021 at 7:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz have re-signed forward Jarrell Brantley, according to Paul Garcia of Project Spurs (Twitter link). Utah issued Brantley a qualifying offer last week to make him a restricted free agent and he has accepted that offer, tweets Tony Jones of The Athletic.

Because Brantley had spent two seasons on a two-way deal with the Jazz, he was eligible this summer for a one-year, minimum-salary qualifying offer that includes a modest partial guarantee.

In past seasons, that partial guarantee has been equivalent to the salary a two-way player would earn if he spent the entire season in the G League, which has been about $84K. This season, all two-way players will earn a salary in the neighborhood of $463K, even if they spend the entire season in the NBAGL, but there has been no indication the partial guarantee on QOs like Brantley’s has increased to reflect that change.

Brantley, 25, has seen limited action at the NBA level since joining the Jazz in 2019, appearing in just 37 total games and averaging 2.4 PPG and 1.3 RPG in 6.3 minutes per contest. The former No. 50 overall pick did have a big year for the Salt Lake City Stars in 2019/20, putting up 18.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG, and 3.7 APG in 33 games (32.4 MPG) to earn All-NBAGL First Team honors.

While Brantley is back under contract with Utah for now, the small partial guarantee on his new deal means he’s probably not a lock for a regular season roster spot.

Jazz Sought Versatility In Free Agency; Butler Ruled Out For Summer League

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

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.

Warriors Trade Eric Paschall To Jazz

August 7th, 2021 at 12:52pm CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 7: The trade is official, the Warriors announced in a press release. As detailed below, the deal sends Paschall to Utah in exchange for the Grizzlies’ 2026 second-round pick, which the Jazz had just acquired in a separate deal. That pick reportedly has top-42 protection.

AUGUST 4: The Warriors have agreed to trade forward Eric Paschall to the Jazz in exchange for a future protected second-round pick, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). That pick will be Memphis’ 2026 second-rounder, with top-42 protection, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Paschall, 24, has spent his first two NBA seasons in Golden State after being selected with the 41st overall pick in the 2019 draft and has been a regular rotation player for the team during that time. In 100 career games with the Warriors, he has averaged 12.2 PPG and 4.0 RPG on .497/.301/.755 shooting in 23.5 minutes per contest.

After a strong rookie year, Paschall’s numbers dipped a little in 2020/21 and he missed a chunk of the season due to a hip injury. Slater suggested in May that the big man’s future with the organization might be “tenuous,” and it looks like he was right. The deal will open up a roster spot and should create a small amount of tax savings for the Warriors.

Paschall will get a chance for a fresh start in Utah, providing frontcourt depth and playing alongside his close friend Donovan Mitchell. The two players grew up together in Westchester County, New York.

Paschall is technically earning the veteran’s minimum this season, but he can’t be absorbed using the minimum-salary exception because his contract was a three-year deal. Since Utah isn’t sending out any salary in the deal, the team will use one of its trade exceptions to take on Paschall’s $1.78MM salary. The exception created in last year’s Tony Bradley trade still has $2MM+ left on it and will expire soon, making it the best fit.

Tony Jones of The Athletic first identified Paschall as a Jazz trade target on Monday.

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.

Mike Conley Returns To Jazz On Three-Year Contract

August 6th, 2021 at 7:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

AUGUST 6: Conley’s deal with the Jazz is now official, the team announced in a press release. General manager Justin Zanik said in a statement that the team is “excited” to bring Conley back and that he has made a “profound impact both on and off the court” during his time in Utah.

The team also officially announced its new deals with Rudy Gay and Hassan Whiteside.

AUGUST 2: The Jazz have reached an agreement with free agent point guard Mike Conley on a three-year contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

According to Charania, the deal is worth $68MM. Agents Steve Heumann and Jess Holtz of CAA Basketball told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski the contract is worth $72.5MM (Twitter link), suggesting that it could include incentives or bonuses.

A report surfaced over the weekend that Jazz were on track to lock up the veteran on a three-year deal. Bringing him back was Utah’s top offseason priority.

As a team with luxury tax concerns, the Jazz needed to shed salary to improve that situation and retain Conley. Utah made a deal to dump a contract last week, having traded Derrick Favors to Oklahoma City.

Conley, 33, struggled in his first year in Utah in 2019/20, but the longtime Grizzlies guard turned things around this past season, averaging 16.2 PPG, 6.0 APG, and 3.5 RPG with a .444/.412/.852 shooting line in 51 games (29.4 MPG). He earned his first All-Star appearance in his 14th NBA season.

Conley was forced to miss games during the postseason due to a hamstring injury, which led to a disappointing finish for a team that had the league’s best regular season record.

Northwest Notes: Jazz, Nuggets, Martin Sr., Timberwolves

August 6th, 2021 at 6:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz’s free agent moves were designed to make them a more complete playoff team, Tony Jones of The Athletic writes. Signing Rudy Gay in free agency and trading for Eric Paschall will allow Utah to match up better against small-ball lineups. The was something the Jazz struggled with when the Clippers went small against them in the postseason. The Jazz are also looking to sign their own restricted free agent, Trent Forrest, to a two-way deal, according to Jones.

We have more from the Western Conference:

The Nuggets began their summer league mini-camp on Friday following a COVID-19 related pause, Kyle Frederickson of the Denver Post reports. Denver’s first three practices were canceled due to health and safety protocols after a positive test and subsequent contact tracing.
Kenyon Martin Sr. is back in the NBA as an assistant coach with the Nuggets’ summer league team, Marc Spears of The Undefeated tweets. He’s hoping to remain in the league in a coaching capacity.
In a detailed interview with the Timberwolves‘ buyers, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tells of how former baseball All-Star Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore made their deal with Glen Taylor. The transfer of ownership will be gradual process and Lore prefers it that way. “Glen had the team for almost 30 years. We’re thinking similarly,” Lore said. “We’re going to have this team for at least the next 30 years. … We don’t think we have all the answers. We’re not ready, quite frankly, to be making all the decisions right now.”

Jazz Sign Hassan Whiteside

August 3rd, 2021 at 9:01pm CST by Eli Cohen

AUGUST 6: The Jazz have made it official with Whiteside, announcing his deal in a press release.

“Hassan is one of the more physically gifted players in the game today and has a vast amount of valuable professional basketball experience,” Jazz GM Justin Zanik said in a statement. “We’re excited to add someone with his skillset and feel he’s a great fit with our current roster.”

AUGUST 3: The Jazz have agreed to a deal with free agent center Hassan Whiteside, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

Whiteside is coming off his least productive season in seven years, having averaged 8.1 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 1.3 BPG in 36 games (15.2 MPG) for Sacramento, but he remains a solid shot-blocker and rebounder, especially as a backup center.

The 32-year-old seven-footer signed a one-year deal with the Kings last year but could never get fully on track with his new team. The Jazz will be hoping that in Quin Snyder‘s system, backing up All-NBA center Rudy Gobert, Whiteside will be able to turn things around.

The Jazz recently traded reserve center Derrick Favors to the Thunder in a cost-cutting move, and Whiteside gives them some level of schematic continuity coming off the bench.

The Jazz are believed to be limited to minimum-salary deals after committing their taxpayer mid-level exception to Rudy Gay, so Whiteside’s deal figures to be worth the veteran’s minimum.

Trade Rumors: Dinwiddie, Hornets, Ingles, T. Young

August 3rd, 2021 at 1:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

Spencer Dinwiddie is close to a deal with the Wizards, but it may take some complex maneuvering to get him there, Fred Katz writes in The Athletic’s free agency recap. The two sides are reportedly hammering out a three-year contract worth $60MM, but Washington is over the cap, so a sign-and-trade will have to be arranged involving the Nets and maybe more teams.

Katz points out that Brooklyn is already over the luxury tax threshold for next season and isn’t interested in adding salary. He suggests the teams may try to tie this deal to the trade sending Russell Westbrook to the Lakers. Katz is confident that Dinwiddie will eventually join the Wizards, but it won’t be easy to work through the details.

In the same piece, Alex Schiffer notes that Brooklyn has been trying to unload DeAndre Jordan‘s contract, which is worth nearly $20MM over the next two years. John Hollinger says the Lakers could send Kyle Kuzma directly to the Nets instead of the Wizards, which would enable Brooklyn to include Jordan and avoid a huge rise in its tax bill.

There’s more on potential trades to watch for:

The Hornets are one of the few teams that still has flexibility after an active first night of free agency, Hollinger adds. A sign-and-trade of Devonte’ Graham allows Charlotte to have $15MM in cap room or to expand the deal and bring another player, possibly Lauri Markkanen. Hollinger states that the Hornets still need one more guard and another big man.
The Warriors would be interested in trading for Joe Ingles if the Jazz make him available, sources tell Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. Ingles will turn 34 soon, but his passing and shooting would be valuable in Golden State’s system, though Thompson cautions that actually acquiring him would be tricky from a cap perspective. The Warriors still have hope of signing longtime Spurs guard Patty Mills, Thompson adds.
Several contending teams and younger teams are interested in getting Thaddeus Young from the Bulls, tweets Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago is hoping to resolve the situation with Markkanen before making a decision on Young.
There’s still a chance the Raptors could keep Goran Dragic– who is being acquired from the Heat in the Kyle Lowry sign-and-trade – rather than flipping him to another team, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet (Twitter link).

Rudy Gay Signs With Jazz

August 3rd, 2021 at 10:25am CST by Arthur Hill

AUGUST 6: Gay has officially signed his contract with the Jazz, the team announced today in a press release.

“Rudy brings a valuable veteran presence to the Jazz which will only enhance our group as it continues to evolve,” Jazz general manager Justin Zanik said in a statement. “He’s proven to be one of the most consistent players in the NBA over his 15-year career and we’re thrilled for him to join our club.”

AUGUST 3: The Jazz have reached an agreement with veteran forward Rudy Gay, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

It will be a two-year deal worth $12.1MM with a player option for the second season, according to his agents, Raymond Brothers and Sam Permut (Twitter link). Utah will use its taxpayer mid-level exception, adds John Hollinger of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Gay, who will turn 35 this month, spent the last four seasons with the Spurs, where he was a reliable contributor off the bench for Gregg Popovich. He averaged 11.4 points and 4.8 rebounds in 63 games last season, which was his 15th in the NBA.

Gay will join Utah’s big man rotation in place of Derrick Favors, who was traded to the Thunder last week. He also reunites with re-signed point guard Mike Conley, a former teammate with the Grizzlies.

The Jazz will be limited to minimum-salary contracts for any further free agent signings.

Trade Rumors: Simmons, Baynes, Lakers, Cash

August 2nd, 2021 at 4:49pm CST by Luke Adams

David Aldridge of The Athletic is the latest reporter to confirm that the Sixers‘ asking price for Ben Simmons remains “sky high.” According to Aldridge, the 76ers are seeking a minimum of two future first-round picks, two first-round pick swaps, and an All-Star level player in most of their discussions about Simmons. A handful of other reports within the last week have passed along details on what kind of packages Philadelphia sought from Toronto, San Antonio, and Golden State for Simmons.

Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA, with free agency about to begin:

The Raptors are exploring the trade market for center Aron Baynes, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Baynes has a non-guaranteed $7.35MM salary for 2021/22 and seems unlikely to return to Toronto. If the team doesn’t find a taker on the trade market, he’s a candidate to be released.
In an in-depth look at how the Lakers‘ acquisition of Russell Westbrook came about, ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne shares several fascinating tidbits, including the fact that Westbrook called Kawhi Leonard in 2019 to talk about playing together in Los Angeles. According to Shelburne, the Lakers had been prepared to move forward on a Buddy Hield acquisition before the opportunity to land Westbrook arose.
Within his recap of last week’s draft activity, John Hollinger of The Athletic provides a housekeeping notes on trades, writing that the Trail Blazers sent $2MM in cash to the Pelicans as part of their trade for the No. 43 pick, while the Thunder sent $2MM in cash to the Jazz in the Derrick Favors trade.