Where the Jazz Trade Package for Rudy Gobert Stands Two Years Later

Two-plus years have already passed since the Utah Jazz traded Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Time for an accounting.

Dec 9, 2022; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27 grabs a rebound against Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson (00) in the second half at Vivint Arena. / Jeffrey Swinger-Imagn Images

It has been a little over two years since the Utah Jazz traded Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Let's examine the total package the Jazz received for Gobert.

Jazz received: Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Walker Kessler, 2023 first-round pick, 2025 first-round pick, 2026 pick swap, 2027 first-round pick and 2029 first-round pick top-5 protected

I'm revisiting this trade because there have been two NBA seasons since and the tipoff game for the 2024-25 season is Tuesday, October 22. There were a lot of pieces in this original deal, and there's been a lot of movement with those pieces since then. 

Immediate Aftermath

Beverley was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for Talen Horton-Tucker shortly after this deal in 2022. Horton-Tucker had two years on his contract at the time and he was not re-signed this past offseason when his contract expired. His time with the Jazz was less than stellar but he signed a one-year minimum contract with the Chicago Bulls in the offseason.

Meanwhile, Bolmaro was waived by the Jazz in February of 2023. Essentially, both of these players ended up being a net zero for the Jazz.

I would argue Horton-Tucker was a net negative throughout his tenure with the Jazz, as he took minutes away from other players who could have been more productive and from players who could have used the minutes toward their development.

Beasley and Vanderbilt were both included in a deal that landed the Jazz a 2027 first-round top-4-protected pick from the Lakers. Right before the 2023 deadline, the Jazz sent out Mike Conley, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and three second-round picks along with those two to secure the first-round pick they received.

On the surface, it seems like the Jazz gave up a ton of stuff here, but they did end up with the most valuable asset in the deal, along with cap space, after waiving Russell Westbrook, who was salary ballast in the deal. In hindsight, it was the correct move at the time, and I would still want the Jazz to do it if we could go back in time.

A Missed Opportunity

The real miss here was not doing a similar deal (possibly a better deal) before the season started. It has been reported the Jazz had a similar deal on the table before the 2022-23 season started but ended up passing on it.

Utah then jumped out to a 10-3 start at the beginning of the season when it was projected to be one of the worst teams in the league. Only four total losses separated the Jazz at No. 9 and the Portland Trail Blazers at No. 5 in the pre-draft lottery odds. Doing this deal before the season most likely would have given Utah more than four more losses.

To add insult to injury, the Trail Blazers moved up from No. 5 to No. 3 at the draft lottery. The Jazz were 27-28 before the trade and finished the season 10-17. The deal at the trade deadline was necessary to help the Jazz bottom out during the second half of the season and ultimately land the No. 9 overall pick in the 2023 draft, which turned into Taylor Hendricks.

Kessler Hits

Kessler was a revelation for Utah during his rookie season. He averaged 9.2 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 2.3 BPG on his way to making the NBA All-Rookie First Team and finished third in the Rookie of the Year voting.

Kessler had a bit of a sophomore slump in an up-and-down second season in Utah. Jazz fans and the front office are excited to see whether he can get back to the great play we saw his rookie year in 2024-25. He's set to be Utah's starting center this year and has consistently been one of the premier rim defenders in the league.

George Impacts Immediately

The four first-round picks and one pick swap were the prized assets of the deal and are where the upside is for the Jazz. The very first pick the Timberwolves sent the Jazz ended up being No. 16 overall in 2023 which the Jazz used to select Keyonte George.

All things considered, this outcome ended up being pretty much the best-case scenario for the Jazz. The pick in 2023 was projected to be in the 20s, but Minnesota struggled compared to expectations in the 2022-23 season.

George averaged 13 PPG, 4.4 APG, and 2.8 RPG in his rookie season with Utah and made the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. George will be the starting point guard for the Jazz, and he's expected to make a pretty good sophomore jump this upcoming season.

George's shot-making and passing ability have been a pleasant surprise. He projects to be a very good player and a key piece for the Jazz going forward. He has a high, All-Star-level ceiling, and I can’t wait to see where he goes from here.

Unfinished Business

The Timberwolves still owe the Jazz their 2025 and 2027 first-round picks unprotected and their 2029 first-round pick top-5 protected. The 2025 pick is projected to be in the 20s, but anything can happen in the NBA.

Minnesota is coming off of a 56-26 season where it made the Western Conference Finals but it did just trade away its second-leading scorer and All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns in the offseason. 2027 and 2029 are still too far out to project where those picks might end up.

Minnesota also owes Utah a 2026 first-round pick swap, but I don't project that pick to convey at the current moment. The Jazz still owe the Oklahoma City Thunder their 2025 first-round pick top-10 protected, which is also top-8 protected in 2026.

The Jazz likely aren’t conveying that pick to the Thunder this year, and if they don’t, they could potentially send their first-round pick to them in 2026, which would mean losing the pick swap as well. If they don’t convey it in either year, Minnesota’s pick would have to end up in the top 8 and higher than the Jazz in 2026 for Utah to be able to utilize the pick swap.

Ultimately, it's more likely than not that the pick swap ends up going unused.

Stay tuned for the second part of this analysis, which will examine this trade from the Timberwolves' perspective. We'll also analyze how this trade has affected Minnesota's future and will continue to affect it, as well as how it affects the future picks owed to the Jazz.

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