Utah Jazz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Could Jazz Flip Barrett If They Acquire Him In Mitchell Trade?

September 1st, 2022 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

Some teams with interest in Knicks forward RJ Barrett believe they’d have a chance to land him if the Jazz were to acquire him in a Donovan Mitchell trade, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. As Begley explains, while the Jazz are thought to like Barrett, there’s a belief that they’d be open to the idea of flipping him for additional first-round picks if he were included as part of a package for Mitchell.

The Jazz’s potential plans for Barrett may be a moot point. Now that the former No. 3 overall pick has agreed to a four-year extension with the Knicks, the poison pill provision will complicate efforts to include him in any Mitchell trade — the Jazz could still theoretically acquire him, but a third team with cap room may need to get involved to make the salary-matching math work, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks noted in a video segment earlier this week.

Heat Notes: Morris, PF Options, Herro, Haslem

August 31st, 2022 at 5:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

The departure of Markieff Morris, who agreed to a deal with the Nets on Tuesday, means the Heat‘s revolving door at power forward will continue, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Morris and P.J. Tucker, who were free agent additions last summer, both signed elsewhere during the offseason. Winderman notes that Miami has been through eight power forwards since Bam Adebayo became the starting center in 2019/20.

Morris’ departure was virtually assured when Udonis Haslem announced last week that he was returning for a 20th season, Winderman adds. Miami will keep one roster spot open due to luxury tax concerns, so there was no room for Morris once fellow free agents Caleb Martin, Victor Oladipo and Dewayne Dedmon all reached new deals.

Martin, who is expected to replace Tucker as the starting power forward, re-signed with Miami for its full taxpayer mid-level exception and will receive $20.4MM over the next three years. He was reportedly about to get a better offer from a rival team, but he preferred to remain with the Heat. Winderman points out that if Tucker had taken the MLE, Miami’s starting point on a new deal with Martin would have been limited to the $4.1MM bi-annual exception.

There’s more on the Heat:

Utah’s Bojan Bogdanovic and Atlanta’s John Collins are players to watch if the Heat decide to trade for a power forward, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Jazz haven’t expressed a desire to part with Bogdanovic, but he has a $19.5MM expiring contract and could become expendable if Utah commits to rebuilding. The Hawks have explored the trade market for Collins, but he has an expensive contract that pays him more than $75MM over the next three seasons, along with a $26.6MM player option for 2025/26. Jackson doesn’t believe Miami should give up a first-round pick for either player.
The Knicks’ extension agreement with RJ Barrett is likely to be similar to what the Heat offer Tyler Herro if he’s not traded, Winderman adds in a separate piece. Herro is eligible for a five-year max extension worth up to $188MM, but Winderman expects his final deal to be more in line with Barrett, whose four-year deal can be worth up to $120MM if he earns several bonuses.
Suns star Chris Paul supports Haslem’s decision to play another season, per Joseph Zucker of Bleacher Report. “You all saw that stuff with Udonis Haslem? Y’all heard everyone talking crazy about him like, ‘Why he on the team? Why he on the team?’ Man, I’m probably his biggest fan,” Paul said to a group of high school players in Los Angeles (video link). “You want to know why? Because young guys need vets. They need somebody like UD showing up every day, if practice at 11:00, he’s probably at the gym at 8:30 every day. To motivate guys. To push guys.”

Lakers Rumors: THT, Westbrook, Reaves, Nunn, Carmelo

August 31st, 2022 at 7:50am CST by Luke Adams

Before the Lakers traded Talen Horton-Tucker to the Jazz in the Patrick Beverley deal, the Pacers expressed interest in the 21-year-old wing, Michael Scotto said in the latest episode of the HoopsHype podcast.

As Scotto explains, the Pacers were interested in pursuing a deal that sent Buddy Hield, Myles Turner, and Daniel Theis to the Lakers in exchange for Russell Westbrook, Horton-Tucker, and Los Angeles’ 2027 and 2029 first-round picks. However, L.A. has been reluctant to include both of those first-rounders in any deal not involving Kyrie Irving, and wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about swapping Horton-Tucker for Theis.

Although Horton-Tucker is off the table, Indiana remains one of the two most likely landing spots for Westbrook, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who says a deal involving the Pacers and Westbrook could involve just one of Hield or Turner — the Pacers still have $30MM+ in cap room and could take on Westbrook’s $47MM+ expiring contract without sending out both players. Still, Buha believes that Utah is a more viable destination for Westbrook than Indiana.

Here’s more on the Lakers from the HoopsHype podcast:

Scotto has gotten the impression that Austin Reaves and the Lakers have mutual interest in continuing their relationship beyond the 2022/23 season. Reaves will be a restricted free agent next summer and will be seeking a pay bump on his minimum-salary contract.
While Kendrick Nunn has been around the Lakers’ facility and has been working out, his ramp-up process has been slowed than anticipated, according to Buha. Nunn said a month ago that he feels 100% healthy, but the acquisition of Beverley gives the team some extra insurance at point guard.
A reunion between Carmelo Anthony and the Lakers remains possible, in Buha’s view, but he believes the veteran forward is more likely to land elsewhere. L.A. still needs more shooting, which Anthony could provide, but also wants to continue to upgrade its perimeter defense, which isn’t one of Carmelo’s strengths.

Knicks/Jazz Rumors: Barrett, Grimes, Toppin, Mitchell

August 30th, 2022 at 6:37pm CST by Rory Maher

The Jazz are high on Knicks wing RJ Barrett and were “pushing” for him to be included in a potential trade for Donovan Mitchell, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic. Prior to agreeing to an extension, sources tell Jones that Barrett’s camp was “bracing” for the 22-year-old to be dealt away.

The extension will make including Barrett in a deal extremely difficult due to the “poison pill provision,” though the possibility reportedly remains. As Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype explains, the Jazz don’t have the necessary cap space or a trade exception big enough to absorb Barrett’s incoming salary, so for him to be included, a third team would likely have to be involved for salary-matching purposes.

As Steve Popper of Newsday writes, not everyone in the Knicks organization viewed Barrett as being worth $107MM over four years ($120MM with incentives), and others thought including him in a proposal for Mitchell might make the Jazz less likely to ask for additional draft compensation, which obviously wasn’t the case.

In addition to Barrett, Utah also values second-year guard Quentin Grimes and third-year forward Obi Toppin, according to Jones, who notes that both young players will likely have to part of the trade package if Barrett is not. However, New York has been “very hesitant” to part with Grimes to this point, sources tell Jones.

Like Marc Berman of The New York Post, both Popper and Jones hears the Knicks are still optimistic about landing Mitchell, but as with Grimes, Jones says they have been reluctant to include a “significant number” of unprotected first-round picks because they want to keep their options open for the future.

Jones still views the Knicks and Jazz as the most logical trade partners for Mitchell, but writes that both teams have questions that need answered first. Popper views Mitchell as a questionable fit with Jalen Brunson, and thinks the Knicks shouldn’t trade away all of their own unprotected first-rounders to land him.

According to Adam Zagoria of NJ.com, Mitchell removed the Jazz from his Twitter bio on Tuesday, fueling speculation about the trade talks.

RJ Barrett Hasn’t Been “Ruled Out” Of Donovan Mitchell Trade

August 30th, 2022 at 4:41pm CST by Rory Maher

Despite an agreement on a lucrative extension and significant complications from the “poison pill provision,” sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (video link via The Rally) that Knicks wing RJ Barrett could still be offered in a trade for Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell.

“It’s not expected that he is going to be ruled out of any potential trade, and I’m told through various sources that RJ Barrett could very well end up being in a potential deal and being in offers depending on the framework of a deal,” Charania said.

According to Charania, New York’s latest offer for Mitchell included Barrett and two unprotected first-round picks, but the Jazz wanted more in return for the three-time All-Star, so the Knicks wound up giving Barrett an extension.

As we outline in our glossary entry, a player who signs a rookie scale extension but remains on his rookie contract has different outgoing and incoming salary-matching figures, which is referred to as a “poison pill” — in Barrett’s case, the gap between his outgoing and incoming figures will reportedly exceed $15MM. That would make it extremely challenging for both the Knicks and Jazz to send out and take back a legal amount of salary if Barrett is part of a package for Mitchell.

As Charania notes, the Knicks still have other assets to include in a deal that doesn’t involve Barrett, with the Jazz reportedly prioritizing landing as many unprotected first-rounders as possible. New York remains “hopeful” that it can still land Mitchell without including Barrett, and wouldn’t have extended him if the team thought it would nix a potential deal, a source tells Marc Berman of The New York Post.

According to Berman, the Lakers are “open to discussions” about a potential three-team trade, and still have interest in Knicks wing Cam Reddish, who received scant playing time after being acquired from Atlanta in January. Charania previously reported that the Lakers are also interested in Jazz forward Bojan Bogdanovic.

Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News reports (Twitter links) that Barrett’s extension is a straight four-year deal with no options and includes $107MM in guaranteed money. Barrett could earn as much as $120MM from incentives, but he’ll still be making an average of $26.75MM per season from 2023-27.

Donovan Mitchell Trade To Knicks Remains Possible

August 30th, 2022 at 9:11am CST by Arthur Hill

RJ Barrett‘s extension with the Knicks complicates a potential trade for Donovan Mitchell, but it doesn’t close the door entirely, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post.

Sources tell Berman that the Jazz are most interested in stockpiling unprotected first-round picks in return for Mitchell. Berman has reported that Utah wants four unprotected picks in the trade, while New York is only willing to part with two, along with three conditional selections.

A league source indicates that the market for Mitchell remains limited, telling Berman, “There’s no place for Donovan to go right now. The Knicks can still get him.”

Berman also hears that the Jazz would like to expand the trade to include the Lakers and hopefully pick up L.A.’s 2027 and 2029 first-rounders. Berman notes that the Lakers likely have interest in Cam Reddish, whom they pursued at the trade deadline and who saw limited playing time after coming to New York. Reddish is a client of Rich Paul at Klutch Sports, Berman points out, which means LeBron James and Anthony Davis would probably support bringing him to L.A.

There’s more on a potential Mitchell trade to New York:

If Barrett’s new contract takes him out of the equation, Utah could become more focused on landing Quentin Grimes, Berman adds in the same piece. The 22-year-old shooting guard established himself as a fixture in coach Tom Thibodeau’s rotation last season, but Berman notes that there would be little chance for him to become a starter in New York with Mitchell and Jalen Brunson on hand.
The Jazz were aware that the Knicks set a Monday night deadline for a Barrett extension, but they didn’t let it impact negotiations, according to Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. She has heard conflicting reports about whether Utah wants Barrett or would be content with a deal that doesn’t include him. Sources tell Todd that both teams are playing hardball right now in trade talks, but there’s still a chance to complete a deal before training camp.
The “poison pill provision” means a third team would have to be included to get Barrett to Utah, ESPN’s Bobby Marks says in a video breakdown of Barrett’s extension. He says a team with cap room, such as the Pacers or Spurs, would have to be willing to take Evan Fournier‘s contract, which is worth nearly $56MM over the next three years.

Knicks Agree To Extend RJ Barrett, Complicating Donovan Mitchell Talks

August 30th, 2022 at 4:51am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks and forward RJ Barrett are finalizing a four-year rookie scale contract extension that could be worth up to $120MM, agent Bill Duffy tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

The exact base value of Barrett’s new deal isn’t yet known, but Ian Begley of SNY.tv reports (via Twitter) that there are bonuses tied to All-Star, All-NBA, and All-Defensive selections. In other words, it sounds like the former No. 3 overall pick would have to play at a very high level to earn the full $120MM.

A former star at Duke, Barrett has steadily increased his scoring average in his three NBA seasons with the Knicks, registering a career-high 20.0 PPG in 70 games (34.5 MPG) in 2021/22. He also contributed 5.8 RPG and 3.0 APG while shooting .408/.342/.714 last season. Those shooting marks were a step down from his career bests in ’20/21 (.441/.401/.746).

According to Wojnarowski, the Barrett extension will complicate the Knicks’ discussions with the Jazz about a potential Donovan Mitchell trade. Sources tell ESPN that those talks intensified over the weekend as the two teams made some progress, but there was still a gap between what each side was willing to do.

Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose set a Monday night deadline to either agree to a deal for Mitchell or commit to an extension for Barrett, per Wojnarowski, who notes that the “poison pill provision” will now almost certainly ensure that the former Blue Devil won’t be part of a package for Mitchell.

As we outline in our glossary entry, a player who signs a rookie scale extension but remains on his rookie contract has different outgoing and incoming salary-matching figures, which is referred to as a “poison pill” — in Barrett’s case, the gap between his outgoing and incoming figures will exceed $15MM, according to Wojnarowski. That would make it extremely challenging for both the Knicks and Jazz to send out and take back a legal amount of salary if Barrett is part of a package for Mitchell.

As Wojnarowski explains, Barrett was a “staple” in several of the proposals for Mitchell that the Jazz and Knicks discussed, with Utah highly valuing the 22-year-old. While New York had apparently been willing to include Barrett, the two teams were still at an impasse over the possible inclusion of Quentin Grimes and the number of unprotected first-round picks in the package, per ESPN.

It remains possible that the Knicks and Jazz will agree to a deal that doesn’t include Barrett, but that would require the Knicks to give up “far more” draft assets than they’ve been willing to surrender thus far, sources tell Wojnarowski.

For now, the two teams are backing off those trade talks, but the Jazz aren’t engaged in serious discussions with any other suitors about Mitchell, so neither they nor the Knicks have ruled out the possibility of resuming their talks before training camps begin in four weeks.

As Wojnarowski notes, Barrett’s extension will end an ignominious streak for the Knicks, as he’ll become the team’s first first-round pick since Charlie Ward in 1999 to sign a multiyear contract extension following his rookie deal.

Barrett will also become the fifth player to finalize a rookie scale extension this offseason. While his deal won’t be worth as much as the maximum-salary extensions signed by Ja Morant, Zion Williamson, and Darius Garland, it will exceed Keldon Johnson‘s four-year, $74MM contract.

Assuming Barrett’s new extension doesn’t include any options, it will keep him under team control through the 2026/27 season.

Stein’s Latest: Morris, Hornets, Mitchell, Lakers

August 28th, 2022 at 1:46pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Veteran free agent power forward Markieff Morris is under consideration as a reserve acquisition for the Sixers in addition to the Nets, writes Marc Stein in a new article for Substack.

Stein notes that the 32-year-old was known to be a vocal locker room presence while on a star-studded 2019/20 championship-winning Lakers club, and could be a good fit for a Brooklyn team fielding several at-times angsty superstars.

Morris missed most of his 2021/22 season with the Heat due to a major neck injury after entering the season as a key reserve. In his 17 available regular season games with Miami, Morris averaged 7.6 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 1.4 APG. The 6’9″ big man out of Kansas posted a shooting line of .474/.333/.889.

Here’s more from Stein:

As the Hornets consider reserve point guard options behind developing All-Star LaMelo Ball, the team has broadened its list of potential targets to include former Suns point guard Elfrid Payton, according to Stein. Isaiah Thomas, who fulfilled the role adequately last season, is still being looked at, as is Pistons point guard Kemba Walker, a three-time All-Star while with Charlotte whom Stein expects to be bought out of his current deal.
The Lakers‘ 2027 and 2029 first-round draft selections, along with the expiring contract of incumbent point guard Russell Westbrook, could be used to help complete a three-team Donovan Mitchell trade for the Jazz, either with the Knicks or even another suitor. Stein writes that the draft picks could hold significant appeal for Jazz team president Danny Ainge, who earlier this summer received quite a bounty in future draft equity as part of his blockbuster deal that shipped former Utah All-Star Rudy Gobert out to the Timberwolves.
Stein cautions that the Lakers, who leveraged a lot of future draft picks in their trade for Anthony Davis, remain fairly protective of the 2027 and 2029 picks. Given that L.A. is fielding a team with (currently) three maximum-salaried veterans all with at least 10 years of experience, one would expect the club to very much be in win-now mode, but the team only wants to make a move if it values the returning players as being worth the sacrifice. Stein defines that as players who can help the team return to its standing as a championship contender, following a disappointing 33-49 season that saw the Lakers on the outside of the play-in tournament looking in.

Western Notes: Suns, Durant, Green, Tillie, Holmgren, Mitchell

August 27th, 2022 at 3:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Suns coach Monty Williams never discussed the Kevin Durant trade rumors with his players, he said during an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio (hat tip to Dana Scott of the Arizona Republic).

“When I first heard about the Kevin Durant stuff, I was kind of blown away by it just because, you know, we’ve been so blessed here to have guys want to come,” Williams said. “At the same time, ‘At the expense of what?’ was my thinking. And I like our team. I love our guys. But I wasn’t going to have conversations that didn’t need to be had.”

Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Deandre Ayton and Jae Crowder were among the names speculated as part of the talks between Brooklyn and Phoenix.

“I think our guys are mature enough to understand that part of our business,” Williams said. “I didn’t want to have conversations about stuff that didn’t need to be brought up.”

We have more from the Western Conference:

Danny Green‘s contract may be the reason he makes the Grizzlies’ roster, Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. Green is on the roster bubble as he recovers from a torn ACL that will likely keep him out of action until at least the second half of the season. However, his expiring $10MM contract is one of the team’s best trade chips. Forward Killian Tillie may be the odd man out if Green isn’t traded, though he could still find his way onto the roster due to his shooting ability and position versatility.
Thunder big man Chet Holmgren, declared out for the season due to a foot injury suffered during a pro-am event, is hardly the first high-profile rookie in that predicament, Drew Maresca of Basketball News notes. Joel Embiid, Blake Griffin, Nerlens Noel, Michael Porter Jr. and Ben Simmons were some of the other highly-touted prospects who had to sit out a full year due to injuries.
The Jazz are reportedly trying to get the best offer for Donovan Mitchell prior to training camp and Sarah Todd of the Deseret News believes that’s a wise approach. She notes that Utah isn’t out to win this coming season, so there’s no reason to keep the All-Star on the roster, while the team that acquires him will want him to build chemistry with his new teammates. It would avoid the awkwardness of having Mitchell in their camp while trade rumors swirl.

Jazz Trying To Get Best Mitchell Offers Before Training Camp

August 26th, 2022 at 10:00pm CST by Rory Maher

The Jazz are trying to get the best trade offers for Donovan Mitchell, particularly from the Knicks, before training camp opens in September, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon said on the latest episode of The Hoop Collective podcast

Windhorst characterized training camp as an “arbitrary deadline” for the Jazz, noting that it’s a typical negotiating tactic to apply pressure in order to get the best offers.

“Basically they’re trying trying to get the Knicks to put the kind of offer that it will take to get Donovan Mitchell on the table before training camp,” MacMahon said, adding that the Jazz would prefer to avoid first-year head coach Will Hardy having to deal with a “circus” in camp.

ESPN’s Tim Bontemps observed that it would behoove both teams to make the trade before camp opens, and MacMahon explained why that’s the case.

“If you’re the Knicks, you’re trying to get this guy and have him be your franchise player, him and (Jalen) Brunson be your new backcourt for now and for years to come,” MacMahon said.

“You want as much time with those guys in the gym together practicing as possible. So I think it’s in both teams’ best interests to get a deal done before camp starts. But it is an artificial deadline, and we all understand that (Jazz president) Danny Ainge is not going to pull the trigger until he gets his price.”

Despite it being less than ideal, holding onto Mitchell into the season is still a viable option for Utah because he still has three years left on his contract, with a fourth-year player option in 2025/26.

While the Cavaliers have reportedly “removed themselves” from Mitchell talks, Windhorst provided an interesting tidbit about the situation before that report came to light.

“Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and Darius Garland, those three guys, I heard the Cavs told the Jazz they’re not available,” Windhorst said.

It makes sense that the Cavs would be reluctant to part with their three core players. Both Garland and Allen were first-time All-Stars last season, Mobley was the runner-up for Rookie of the Year, and all three are under contract for multiple seasons.

It’s possible the Jazz said we need one of these three players in return to make a deal and the Cavs ended the discussions, though that’s pure speculation on my part.