Jazz Positioned to ‘Strike’ According to NBA Insider

Can the Utah Jazz be one big move away from contention?

The Utah Jazz rebuild could be over sooner rather than later. According to NBA insider Tony Jones of The Athletic, the Jazz are positioned to go all in via trade next summer. 

Jones shared his thoughts on ESPN’s 700 The Drive with Spence Checketts

“They have a team that they like, in terms of really being able to strike next summer,” Jones said. “So they have a lot of depth. They have a lot of movable contracts. They have a lot of guys that are entering the last year of their contracts. So right now, they’re a really, really flexible basketball team, and I think they think they’re a really competitive basketball team as well. So I think this is a team that doesn’t want to have a prolonged rebuild.”

Tony Jones(@TJonesOnTheNBA) talking Jazz at Summer League, offseason so far + more https://t.co/PNDm9Ys0zZ

— ESPN 700 | 92.1 (@ESPN700) July 17, 2023

The emergence of Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler last season has certainly sped up the process of Utah being relevant. Although Jones’ comments do beg the question: What players would be relinquished in an exchange, and what position they target?

In an all-in type trade, no players would be 100% safe, but one would have to assume that Kessler and Markkanen are pretty close to being a permanent part of Utah’s future. 

Also, the Jazz currently has some moveable contracts, but if they have intentions of pairing Markkanen with an All-Star talent via trade, they’re better positioned to make something happen in-season. 

Utah has three contracts coming off the books at year-end in Talen Horton-Tucker, Kelly Olynyk, and Simone Fontecchio. These contracts will be considered gold for franchises looking for salary cap relief. 

The combination of those three expiring deals, with Jordan Clarkson or Collin Sexton, and as many first-round picks needed, would be a tough package to trump if an All-Star talent became available.

However, the Jazz can’t control when an All-Star talent will be available. If there’s nothing worth pursuing during the season, Utah could simply let those contracts run their course and be positioned to be aggressive in 2024 free agency. 

That said, if Jazz CEO Danny Ainge were to have it his way, the most likely way to upgrade is through a trade rather than free agency. The Ringer's Ryen Russillo joined The Bill Simmons Podcast last year and revisited a past conversation he had with Ainge, paraphrasing the executive's remarks.

“All you guys are obsessed with cap space, but I like to trade," Russillo recalled Ainge telling him. "I like to know what I’m getting. I don't want to wait around all summer and be disappointed when we don't get somebody. So I’m in control of the transaction here. When I’m trading, I know exactly what it is.”

Ainge’s preferred method even rings truer now, considering he has to deal with the obstacle of drawing players to a franchise that has a less-than-stellar history in the free agency market. 

Finally, the Jazz have to figure out if some of their young talents can be groomed into future starters before knowing what player is worth going all-in on. Finding out what they have in Keyonte George, Ochai Agbaji, and Horton-Tucker will go a long way in figuring out what their biggest positional need is moving forward.

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