Jazz Offseason: 3 Teams Provide a Cautionary Tale

The Utah Jazz must remember that the whole is not always greater than the sum of its parts.

The debate on how to upgrade the Utah Jazz's roster will run wild this offseason. It’s not clear how Utah will go about it, but thanks to the Phoenix Suns, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Cleveland Cavaliers, there’s a road map of what path not to take.

Mortgaging the future for one player has led to disaster for these franchises, and the Jazz front office should be taking note (no pun intended). 

Let’s examine.

Suns

The Suns were poised to contend for a title when Kevin Durant joined Devin Booker, DeAndre Ayton, and Chris Paul at the 2023 trade deadline. Sacrificing Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, and four unprotected first-round picks was a steep price to pay, but adding arguably a top-five player in the league made Phoenix the front runners to come out of the West. 

Fast forward just three months, and the Suns are a franchise in disarray. Adding Durant not only didn’t move the needle on the playoff front, but Phoenix is projected to be over the salary cap in 2023-24 while also not owning a first-round pick in the upcoming draft. 

It’s a dire situation that should only get worse, with the soon-to-be 35-year-old Durant already in the back nine of his playing career. The Suns owing $150 million over the next three years to Durant doesn’t bode well for a franchise that’s now cap space and draft capital poor due to the acquisition.

Cavaliers

It was a bold move when the Cavaliers traded for All-Star Donovan Mitchell last summer with the Jazz. At the time, it felt like the New York Knicks were the losers for not meeting Jazz CEO Danny Ainge’s outrageous asking price, but not anymore. The Knicks are the team that’s now trending up after knocking the Cavs out of the playoffs in the first round. 

Meanwhile, Cleveland has more questions than answers while facing the possibility of Mitchell walking in free agency in two years with nothing to show for it. Utah receiving Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, Ochai Agbaji, three unprotected first-rounders, and two pick swaps is nothing short of highway robbery.

Timberwolves

The Timberwolves pushed all its chips in the middle by acquiring Rudy Gobert in exchange for Walker Kessler, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Patrick Beverley, four first-rounders, and a pick swap. We’re only one season in, and Timberwolves fans are wondering how GM Tim Connelly is still employed.

Minnesota will be on the hook for $131M for Gobert over the next three years, while Utah will owe Kessler $8.5M during that same time. I could go on for days about what a fleece job this was, but you get the picture. 

Bottom Line

When listening to Utah’s front office, it sounds like they won’t be forcing the issue when upgrading the roster. Jazz GM Justin Zanik touched on this approach in his end-of-season press conference. 

“We’re always trying to make really good decisions,” Zanik said. “If opportunities come up and fits in that timeline then great. To go push it and use it that it’s not of value — like you’re overpaying just because you want to squeeze something into a window —  we’re not going to be pushed by a timeline.”

It sounds like Utah is in good hands.

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