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NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Northwest Division

November 8th, 2018 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Over the course of the 2018/19 NBA season, up until February’s trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA, monitoring their value and exploring the likelihood that they’ll be moved. Each of these looks at possible trade candidates focuses on a specific division, as we zero in on three players from that division.

Entering the 2018/19 season, all five Northwest teams were projected to finish above .500. That scenario would create a dearth of sellers in the division, but that doesn’t mean there are no trade candidates to be found. In fact, the NBA’s most notable current trade candidate, one who has dominated headlines since mid-September, plays in the Northwest.

Here’s our early-season look at a few possible trade candidates from the Northwest…

Jimmy Butler, G/F
Minnesota Timberwolves
$20.45MM cap hit; $19.84MM player option for 2019/20

Since Butler’s trade request went public on September 19, our archive of Butler-related rumors and news items features a staggering 74 additional stories.

The saga has taken a number of twists and turns along the way, and we don’t need to belabor it in this space. Suffice it to say, Butler is very much available and at this point, it seems like just a matter of when – not if – the Timberwolves will move him.

While the Wolves could drag out the process to the trade deadline, Michael Rand of The Star Tribune offers five reasons why it would make sense for Minnesota to find a deal right now. When the club gets serious about moving its All-NBA swingman, the Heat, Rockets, Sixers, and Clippers are among the likeliest trade partners, though a dark horse suitor could always emerge.

Derrick Favors, F/C
Utah Jazz
$16.9MM cap hit; non-guaranteed $16.9MM salary for 2019/20

The Jazz have insisted for years that the Favors/Rudy Gobert frontcourt pairing can work, and at times it has. But Favors is a better fit at center than power forward, and Utah is a better team with a smaller power forward alongside Gobert — so far this season, the four-man duo of Gobert, Ricky Rubio, Donovan Mitchell, and Joe Ingles has a +18.6 net rating with Jae Crowder filling out the lineup, compared to a -7.5 rating with Favors in that last spot.

Sean Deveney of The Sporting News recently wrote that few people around the NBA expects Favors to remain in Utah in 2019/20, when his $16.9MM salary is non-guaranteed. Deveney suggested that if the Jazz could move Favors for a more versatile forward, an in-season trade would be a possibility.

It won’t be easy to find a forward who would improve the Jazz and whose 2018/19 salary is similar to Favors’, without any guaranteed 2019/20 money. DeMarre Carroll, who has a $15.4MM expiring deal, could be one option, but the Nets wouldn’t have much need for Favors.

Malik Beasley, G/F
Denver Nuggets
$1.77MM cap hit; guaranteed $2.73MM salary for 2019/20

Beasley hasn’t been the subject of any trade rumors this season and there’s no indication that Denver wants to move him, so this is merely speculation on my part. However, if and when Will Barton and Isaiah Thomas get healthy, there likely won’t be enough minutes to go around in the backcourt and on the wing for the Nuggets, so someone like Beasley or Torrey Craig could be the odd man out.

If the Nuggets, who currently rank 28th in the NBA in three-point percentage, go shopping for outside shooting help at the deadline, they have three sizeable trade exceptions they could use to acquire a player without sending out any salary, but they’re only about $7.5MM shy of the luxury tax threshold. In certain trade scenarios, they might want to move a small salary like Beasley’s or Craig’s in order to avoid the tax.

Here’s one hypothetical scenario involving a popular trade candidate: If the Nuggets were to send a draft pick to Cleveland for Kyle Korver, they could use one of their trade exceptions to land him, but his $7.56MM salary would nudge the team slightly over the tax line. Attaching Beasley or Craig to that draft pick would improve the package for the Cavs and allow Denver to stay under the tax.

Previously:

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Thabo Sefolosha Returns Following Five-Game Suspension

October 28th, 2018 at 3:53pm CST by JD Shaw
  • Jazz guard Thabo Sefolosha will be available to play Sunday against the Mavericks, according to Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News. Sefolosha served a five-game suspension this season for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy in April, and played just 38 games with the team last year.
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Raul Neto Out At Least Two More Weeks

October 26th, 2018 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Jazz point guard Raul Neto still isn’t ready to return, according to the team, which announced today (via Twitter) that Neto will be re-evaluated in two weeks. He continues to battle a right hamstring injury.

For Neto, who was expected to add depth to a point guard depth chart that also features Ricky Rubio and Dante Exum, being re-evaluated in two weeks is becoming a common refrain. Utah made similar announcements on September 24 and again on October 10, so there’s certainly no guarantee that the 26-year-old will be ready to return in 14 days.

Neto, who averaged 12.1 minutes per contest in 41 games for the Jazz last season, re-signed with the team over the summer inking a two-year, $4.3MM contract. The second year of that deal is non-guaranteed, so if Neto is nagged by health issues throughout the season and/or fails to reclaim a rotation spot, he’d be a release candidate next summer.

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Deveney: Favors' Days In Utah Could Be Numbered

October 26th, 2018 at 11:34am CST by Luke Adams
  • Although Derrick Favors signed a new two-year deal with the Jazz during the summer, his $16.9MM salary for 2019/20 is non-guaranteed, and few people around the NBA expect him to still be in Utah at that point, according to Deveney. Favors could be a trade candidate at this season’s deadline if the Jazz are able to move him a more versatile forward.

    [SOURCE LINK]
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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 10/23/18

October 23rd, 2018 at 9:45pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Earlier today, it was reported that the Pelicans will become the 28th franchise to launch a G League affiliate. The new franchise will begin next season and play its games in Birmingham, Alabama. Arena renovations aren’t expected to be ready by the time the 2019/20 season starts, so the team intends to begin its history in Erie, Pennsylvania.

With New Orleans adding a G League team, only the Nuggets and Trail Blazers are without an affiliate, and Denver may be next in line — ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reported today (via Twitter) that the Nuggets will also attempt to have an affiliate in place for the 2019/20 season, perhaps in the northwest suburbs of Denver.

As for the franchises with G League affiliates this season, only one team made a move today…

  • The Jazz have assigned Tony Bradley to the Salt Lake City Stars, per the team’s Twitter feed. This is Bradley’s first G League assignment this season.
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Jazz G League Team Selects Willie Reed In Draft

October 21st, 2018 at 3:22pm CST by JD Shaw
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2018/19 Over/Unders: Northwest Division

October 16th, 2018 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

The 2018/19 NBA regular season gets underway tonight, which means it’s time to get serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign. With the help of the lines from Bovada and the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division, to have you weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

Having already looked at the other five divisions, we’re moving onto the Northwest today…

Utah Jazz

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Jazz poll)

Oklahoma City Thunder

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Thunder poll)

Denver Nuggets

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Nuggets poll)

Portland Trail Blazers

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Trail Blazers poll)

Minnesota Timberwolves

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Timberwolves poll)

Previous voting results:

Atlantic:

  • Boston Celtics (59.5 wins): Over (53.63%)
  • Toronto Raptors (55.5 wins): Over (56.95%)
  • Philadelphia 76ers (54.5 wins): Under (51.19%)
  • Brooklyn Nets (31.5 wins): Under (56.04%)
  • New York Knicks (28.5 wins): Under (54.13%)

Southwest:

  • Houston Rockets (56.5 wins): Over (69.33%)
  • New Orleans Pelicans (45.5 wins): Under (53.4%)
  • San Antonio Spurs (44.5 wins): Under (60%)
  • Dallas Mavericks (34.5 wins): Over (55.16%)
  • Memphis Grizzlies (34.5 wins): Under (60.87%)

Central:

  • Indiana Pacers (47.5 wins): Over (62.04%)
  • Milwaukee Bucks (47.5 wins): Over (73.7%)
  • Detroit Pistons (38.5 wins): Over (56.36%)
  • Cleveland Cavaliers (30.5 wins): Over (55.42%)
  • Chicago Bulls (29.5 wins): Over (61.8%)

Pacific:

  • Golden State Warriors (62.5 wins): Over (53.45%)
  • Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Over (55.2%)
  • Los Angeles Clippers (36.5 wins): Under (55.7%)
  • Phoenix Suns (29.5 wins): Under (53.4%)
  • Sacramento Kings (25.5 wins): Under (63.87%)

Southeast:

  • Washington Wizards (45.5 wins): Over (56.28%)
  • Miami Heat (43.5 wins): Under (57.42%)
  • Charlotte Hornets (35.5 wins): Over (56.73%)
  • Orlando Magic (30.5 wins): Under (68.41%)
  • Atlanta Hawks (23.5 wins): Under (58.38%
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NBA Teams With Most, Least Roster Continuity

October 16th, 2018 at 8:51am CST by Luke Adams

As usual, the 2018 NBA offseason featured plenty of player movement, with new rookies entering the league, free agents changing teams, and a total of 31 trades being completed between the end of the 2017/18 season and 2018/19’s opening night.

Some teams were more involved in that summer carousel than others. The Hawks, for instance, will enter the season carrying only seven players who finished last season with the team. The Suns will also bring back just seven players from last year’s squad, and that number figures to drop to six once the team completes its reported signing of Jamal Crawford, assuming Davon Reed is the odd man out.

Because teams are permitted to carry 15 players on standard contracts and two more on two-way deals, the maximum number of players a club could have brought back was 17. No team got that high, but the Heat and Jazz are each bringing back 14 players from last year’s rosters. Impressively, all 14 players on Miami’s standard roster are returning players — only the club’s two-way players are new.

[RELATED: 2018/19 NBA Roster Counts]

While many teams turned over their two-way contract slots entirely, several clubs are bringing back those players, either keeping them on two-way deals or promoting them to their active rosters. The Nuggets, Bulls, Pacers, and Lakers are among the teams who retained both of their two-way players from last season.

[RELATED: 2018/19 NBA Two-Way Contract Tracker]

Listed below are the number of returning players for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, from most to fewest. Bringing back a significant number of players doesn’t necessarily lead to regular season success, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a few of the teams near the top of this list enjoy fast starts due to their players’ familiarity with each other, while teams near the bottom of the list may take some time to get used to their changes.

Here’s the returning-player count for each team:

  1. Miami Heat: 14
  2. Utah Jazz: 14
  3. Boston Celtics: 13
  4. Chicago Bulls: 12
  5. Denver Nuggets: 12
  6. New York Knicks: 12
  7. Cleveland Cavaliers: 11
  8. Indiana Pacers: 11
  9. Philadelphia 76ers: 11
  10. Portland Trail Blazers: 11
  11. Sacramento Kings: 11
  12. Toronto Raptors: 11
  13. Charlotte Hornets: 10
  14. Detroit Pistons: 10
  15. Golden State Warriors: 10
    • Note: Patrick McCaw remains a restricted free agent. The Warriors’ returning player count could increase to 11 if he re-signs.
  16. Los Angeles Clippers: 10
  17. Milwaukee Bucks: 10
  18. Dallas Mavericks: 9
  19. Memphis Grizzlies: 9
  20. Minnesota Timberwolves: 9
  21. New Orleans Pelicans: 9
  22. Oklahoma City Thunder: 9
  23. Orlando Magic: 9
  24. Washington Wizards: 9
  25. Brooklyn Nets: 8
  26. Houston Rockets: 8
  27. Los Angeles Lakers: 8
  28. San Antonio Spurs: 8
  29. Atlanta Hawks: 7
  30. Phoenix Suns: 7
    • Note: The Suns’ returning player count will drop to 6 if Jamal Crawford replaces Davon Reed on the roster, as is expected.
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2018 Offseason In Review: Utah Jazz

October 13th, 2018 at 8:16pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2018 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2018/19 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Utah Jazz.

Signings:

  • Standard contracts:
    • Derrick Favors: Two years, $33.8MM. Includes likely and unlikely incentives. Second year non-guaranteed. Re-signed using Bird rights.
    • Dante Exum: Three years, $28.8MM. Includes unlikely incentives. Re-signed using Bird rights.
    • Raul Neto: Two years, $4.3MM. Includes unlikely incentives. Second-year non-guaranteed. Re-signed using Bird rights.
    • Georges Niang: Three years, minimum salary. Second and third years non-guaranteed. Re-signed using Non-Bird rights.
  • Two-way contracts:
  • Non-guaranteed camp contracts:

Trades:

  • Acquired cash ($1.5MM) from the Rockets in exchange for the draft rights to Vince Edwards (No. 52 pick).

Draft picks:

Departing players:

Other offseason news:

  • Hired Fotis Katsikaris as assistant coach to replace Igor Kokoskov. Katsikaris is the NBA’s first-ever native Greek coach.

Salary cap situation:

  • Remained over the cap.
  • Carrying approximately $115.7MM in guaranteed salaries.
  • Full mid-level exception ($8.64MM) still available.
  • Full bi-annual exception ($3.38MM) still available.

Check out the Utah Jazz’s full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.

Story of the summer:

In a league where change is common, the Jazz were remarkably quiet during the offseason. First-round pick Grayson Allen is the only significant addition to the roster, while veteran forward Jonas Jerebko, who was waived in July and later signed with the Warriors, was the only significant loss.

That means last season’s surprise contender in the Western Conference will be back with virtually the same cast of characters that won 48 games and ousted the Thunder in the first round of the playoffs. The emergence of Donovan Mitchell, who finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting, helped to speed up the rebuilding process in Utah after Gordon Hayward left to sign with the Celtics.

The Jazz kept their rotation together by re-signing power forward Derrick Favors and reserve guard Dante Exum over the summer.  Coach Quin Snyder should benefit from the continuity among a solid group that appears headed for a long string of postseason trips.

Read more

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Jazz Release Branch, Cousins, Lyles

October 13th, 2018 at 4:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Jazz got down to the NBA’s roster limit by waiving three players, the team announced on its website. The final cuts were guards Stephaun Branch, Isaiah Cousins and Jairus Lyles, who may all be ticketed for Utah’s G League affiliate in Salt Lake City if they clear waivers.

Branch was in the G League last season with the South Bay Lakers. He appeared in 50 games, starting seven, and averaged 10.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals per night. The West Georgia product was just signed by the Jazz earlier this afternoon.

Cousins also spent last season in the G League, playing 36 games for Salt Lake City. He posted a 13.1/ 3.6/4.4 line while averaging 1.3 steals per game.

Lyles is a rookie out of UMBC who played for the Jazz during summer league. He averaged 20.2 PPG in college last season.

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