Utah Jazz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Reactions, Notes On Trade Sending Korver To Jazz

November 29th, 2018 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers and the Jazz struck a deal on Wednesday, agreeing to a trade that will send Kyle Korver to Utah in exchange for Alec Burks and a pair of second-round picks. The move isn’t technically official yet, but Korver has already weighed in on it, speaking to Joe Vardon of The Athletic about his impending return to the Jazz.

“I’m thankful that (Cavaliers GM) Koby (Altman) and management were upfront and mindful of my family through this process and are sending us to a great city and organization,” Korver said. “We have lots of friendships there, which will soften the landing.”

As Vardon notes, the Cavaliers aren’t in a particularly good spot by now, and the organization’s image figures to take a hit this season as the losses pile up. However, players inside and outside of the organization will take notice that Cleveland kept Korver in the loop as they explored the trade market, ultimately moving him to a place where he and his family can be comfortable.

Here’s more on the swap between the Cavaliers and Jazz:

Although Cavaliers players recognize the team’s situation this season and will appreciate that the franchise sent Korver to a favorable destination, multiple players are a little upset by the trade, according to Vardon. Those players still want to win, and know that the Cavs’ outside shooting will take a big hit with Korver gone. Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com has a handful of quotes from Cavs players reacting to the deal.
In the view of Jordan Greer of The Sporting News, the Korver swap is a win-win for the Cavaliers, who received an A- grade from Greer, and the Jazz, who got a B+.
Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com hears that the Cavaliers weren’t confident that Sixers guard Markelle Fultz would have been a strong enough return for Korver, since his shooting issues and possible shoulder problems made it difficult his true value.
Tony Jones of The Athletic and Eric Woodyard of The Deseret News explored the impact of the Korver deal from the Jazz‘s side.

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/25/18

November 25th, 2018 at 8:10pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

Here are Sunday’s G League assignments and recalls from across the NBA:

The Wizards assigned rookie forward Troy Brown Jr. to their G League affiliate, according to a tweet from the team.
As Lonnie Walker continues his recovery from a right meniscus tear, the Spurs have assigned him to their G League affiliate in Austin, according to a press release from the team.
The Timberwolves have recalled rookie forward Keita Bates-Diop from the Iowa Wolves, according to a tweet from the team’s PR department.
The Jazz PR team announced (via Twitter) that the team recalled Tony Bradley from their Salt Lake City affiliate.
According to a tweet from the Grizzlies PR department, the team recalled rookie guard Jevon Carter from the Memphis Hustle.
The Pistons announced in an email that they have recalled rookie Khyri Thomas from the Grand Rapids Drive, the team’s G League affiliate.

The Jazz Rely on Mitchell Too Much

November 25th, 2018 at 5:00pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

The structure of the offense and struggles from key players have hampered the Jazz and their ability to put up points this season. Tom Ziller of SB Nation writes about the team’s over-reliance on Donovan Mitchell to keep them afloat.

Western Notes: Popovich, Rose, Jazz, Harrison

November 25th, 2018 at 3:21pm CST by JD Shaw

Gregg Popovich was asked Saturday about the importance of Patty Mills‘ leadership following the departures of Kawhi Leonard and Manu Ginobili, with the longtime Spurs coach delivering a straightforward answer on the matter.

“Kawhi was a great player, but he wasn’t a leader or anything,” Popovich said, according to ESPN’s Michael C. Wright. “Manu and Patty were the leaders. Kawhi’s talent will always be missed, but that leadership wasn’t his deal at that time. That may come as he progresses, but Manu and Patty filled that role last year, and LaMarcus [Aldridge] came a long way in that regard also.”

The Spurs traded Leonard and Danny Green to the Raptors in exchange for DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a 2019 first-round pick this summer, ending a seven-year run for Leonard with the team. Leonard grew as a player and teammate in San Antonio, receiving two All-Star selections and a Finals MVP.

Popovich called him a “great teammate” this past offseason and appreciated his contributions, but it’s no secret who the leaders on the team were during their time together.

There’s more out of the Western Conference today:

Derrick Rose is happy with the Timberwolves‘ play since Jimmy Butler was traded, as relayed by the Chicago Sun-Times. “I think the ball movement, everyone being on the same page, and the new pieces that we have, like they’re for the team,” Rose said. “They’re professional, great dudes, and that’s what we needed.’’ Minnesota traded Butler and Justin Patton for Robert Covington, Dario Saric, Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 second-round pick in early November.
Eric Woodyard of The Deseret News examines what’s wrong with the Jazz, who have started the 2018/19 season with an 8-11 record. Utah was one of the NBA’s most surprising teams last season, finishing the campaign with a 48-34 record.
Shaquille Harrison holds no hard feelings toward the Suns after being cut by the team before the season, Gina Mizell of The Athletic writes. “I’ve always taken that with me,” Harrison said. “You just never know what’s gonna happen, how things are gonna shake out. I just looked at it as an opportunity for me. It ended up working out for me. I looked at things as everything happens for a reason, so it was purposeful.” Harrison, now with the Bulls, played 18 minutes against Phoenix on Wednesday.

Poll: Will The Jazz Make The Playoffs?

November 24th, 2018 at 9:40pm CST by Luke Adams

Over the last two days, we’ve gauged your thoughts on two surprise Western playoff contenders, asking if you expect the Grizzlies and the Clippers to make the playoffs. In each case, about two-thirds of the respondents in our poll voted yes. But if the Grizzlies and Clippers are pushing their way into the postseason conversation, that means at least one or two teams we expected to be in the playoffs may end up being pushed out.

One potential candidate to finish outside the top eight in the Western Conference is Utah. The Jazz entered the season with high expectations — they finished the 2017/18 regular season on a 29-6 run, then dispatched the Thunder in the first round before falling to Houston. Entering the 2018/19 campaign, many experts and fans viewed Utah as a probable top-four team in the West.

So far though, the Jazz have played more like the team that started last season 19-28, rather than the team that won 29 of its last 35 games. With Donovan Mitchell banged up and struggling to score efficiently, the Jazz have had problems getting the ball in the net as a team, ranking 26th in offensive rating. At a time when many NBA clubs are looking to score as many of their points as possible from outside the three-point line and at the foul line, Utah ranks 27th in 3PT% and 26th in FT%.

Even the Utah defense, which was considered one of the NBA’s best entering the season, has underperformed, ranking 14th in defensive rating so far, despite anchor Rudy Gobert not missing a game.

The season hasn’t been a total disaster for the Jazz. They’ve had good road wins in Houston, New Orleans, Memphis, and Sacramento, and they’ve beaten Boston twice. But they’ve also had their fair share of duds, including a 50-point loss in Dallas and a 27-point defeat in Indiana. In total, Utah is 8-11, which puts the team in a tie for the second-worst record in a competitive Western Conference.

The Jazz still have a ton of time to turn things around, and it would be surprising if they don’t go on a run at some point. Still, it won’t be easy to earn a top-eight spot in the West. Utah would have to leapfrog the Mavericks, Spurs, Pelicans, Rockets, and the surprising Kings just to get to No. 8. As the season nears the one-quarter mark, it’s worth questioning if we overrated the Jazz at all based on their red-hot finish to the 2017/18 season.

What do you think? Do you still consider the Jazz a strong bet to make the postseason, or do you believe they’ll end up on the outside looking in? Vote in our poll, then head down to the comment section to share your two cents.

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Free Agent Stock Watch 2019: Northwest Division

November 23rd, 2018 at 8:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Every week, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents next offseason. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we turn our attention to the Northwest Division:

Isaiah Thomas, Nuggets, 29, PG (Down) – Signed to a one-year, $2MM deal in 2018
Thomas hoped to revive his career as a high-scoring sixth man for one of the league’s up-and-coming teams. Instead, Thomas has yet to make his Denver debut. Thomas continues to struggle with hip issues and there’s no timetable for his return. Just a couple of years removed from being a candidate for the league’s Most Valuable Player award, Thomas has a cloudy future. It’s more likely he’ll be forced into early retirement than ever approaching his former level of excellence and that would be a shame.

Derrick Rose, Timberwolves, 30, PG (Up) – Signed to a one-year, $2.39MM deal in 2018
Seriously, did anyone think Rose would have another 25-point outing in his career, let alone twice as many points? Rose’s 50-point explosion against Utah on Halloween was a shocker and he’s remained a steady offensive threat since that blast from the past. He’s averaging 22.0 PPG and 4.0 APG over his last eight games. Once thought to be on the verge of retirement, Rose clearly still has a lot left in the tank. He’ll be getting a substantial raise in the open market if he keeps this up.

Abdel Nader, Thunder, 25, SF (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $4.16MM deal in 2017
The Celtics were about to cut Nader loose this summer until the Thunder came calling with a trade offer. The 2016 second-round pick has a non-guaranteed contract and he hasn’t done anything to convince Oklahoma City to keep him around after this season. Nader hasn’t been able to break into the wing rotation, playing a total of just 15 minutes. Nader will probably be looking for another fresh start in July.

Seth Curry, Trail Blazers, 28, PG (Down) — Signed to a one-year, $2.795MM deal in 2018
Curry left Dallas with the hope of reestablishing his value after missing all of last season with stress fracture in his lower left leg. It hasn’t started off the way Curry envisioned. He wasn’t effective in a backup role (6.09 PER) before missing the last four games with a knee injury. There’s still hope for Curry to turn things around and fill the role that Shabazz Napier played last season. The way it’s going now, he’ll be scrounging for another one-year deal next summer.

Ricky Rubio, Jazz, 28, PG (Down) – Signed to a four-year, $55MM deal in 2015
The Jazz have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams during the first quarter of the season. The team’s starting point guard is partly to blame. Rubio, who is making nearly $15MM in his walk year, is shooting 37.3% from the field and over the last six games he’s averaging four assists while making 2.5 turnovers per game. Rubio needed to adjust his game when the team drafted dynamic creator Donovan Mitchell and right now, their backcourt pairing still seems a bit awkward. It’ll interesting to see if the Jazz look to move Rubio before the trade deadline to shake things up.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Raul Neto Recalled From Stars

November 14th, 2018 at 7:11pm CST by clarkcrum

The Jazz have recalled Raul Neto one day after assigning him to the Salt Lake City Stars while he works his way back from injury, the team tweeted this evening.

Western Notes: Lowry, Covington, Rockets

November 13th, 2018 at 10:09pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Jazz saw Gordon Hayward walk away after the 2016/17 campaign but he wasn’t the only star the team had an eye on that offseason. Utah spoke with Kyle Lowry‘s representatives during the summer of 2017 and the organization felt confident that it could sign Lowry, sources tell Andy Larsen and Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune.

The front office decided to pull out of the Lowry sweepstakes because signing the point guard would have required the team to use the cap space it had planned to use for Hayward. Lowry ended up re-signing with Toronto on a three-year pact.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Jazz also had interest in Otto Porter and Danilo Gallinari during the 2017 offseason, Larsen and Walden detail in the same piece. Both players signed with other teams while Utah was waiting on Hayward’s decision.
One league executive tells Marc Stein of The New York Times that he expects Robert Covington and Dario Saric to mesh well with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. Stein adds that the Timberwolves would have likely been better off long-term with the Josh Richardson offer from Miami.
With Carmelo Anthony‘s future in Houston up in the air, Kelly Iko of The Athletic revisits the decision to sign him in the first place, citing sources who say that there were players and members of the Rockets organization who were “wary of what his arrival would bring.”

NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/13/18

November 13th, 2018 at 10:08pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Here are Tuesday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

The Jazz have assigned Raul Neto to the Salt Lake City Stars, according to the team’s website. Neto is rehabbing from a hamstring injury.
The Raptors have assigned Malachi Richardson to their G League affiliate, according to the Raptors 905’s Twitter feed.
The Lakers have recalled Moritz Wagner and Svi Mykhailiuk from the South Bay Lakers, the team announces on Twitter.
Elie Okobo will head to the Northern Arizona Suns, as Phoenix has assigned him to their G League affiliate (per the team’s website). The rookie has played in 11 NBA games for the Suns this season.
The Bucks have assigned Christian Wood to the Wisconsin Herd, according to the team’s Twitter feed.

Mitchell Has Allowed Franchise To Turn Page

November 9th, 2018 at 7:08pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Donovan Mitchell‘s emergence as a potential superstar allowed the Jazz to quickly move on from the loss of Gordon Hayward in free agency, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN examines in a post on Hayward’s return to Utah on Friday. Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey and coach Quin Snyder felt they could retool the roster and become a playoff contender again but had no idea Mitchell would emerge as a franchise player in his rookie year, Wojnarowski continues. Mitchell provides the Jazz with a selling point to recruit another star in free agency and he’s well on his way to a max contract extension in 2020, Wojnarowski adds.

Floor spacing, 3-point shooting and defensive intensity have been areas of concern for the Jazz. The Thunder continue to deal with outside shooting woes. David Yapkowitz of Basketball Insiders takes a closer look at issues involving each Northwest club.