John Collins Jazz Deal: Mavs 1 Step Closer to Kyle Kuzma Sign-&-Trade?
After having an NBA Draft filled with action on Thursday, it seemed as if the league collectively decided to take the weekend off to rest up for free agency, which will get underway on Friday. However, the layoff was broken on Monday as the Atlanta Hawks traded John Collins to the Utah Jazz in what was merely a salary-dump deal.
When reading the tea leaves, does this latest move increase the Dallas Mavericks' chances of landing Washington Wizards versatile forward Kyle Kuzma?
"The Jazz and Mavericks are among the teams known to have interest in Kuzma, with the Jazz said to be one of the few teams willing to put up big money in various talks early on," Action Network’s Matt Moore reported last week.
Well ... now the Jazz might be out of the business of 'putting up big money' for Kuzma being that they just used up most of their cap space to take in Collins. And if the Mavs were vying with the Jazz for Kuzma's services, that would mean Dallas could be in the driver's seat now ... right?
As is the case with all of these hypotheticals, it all comes down to what the player wants. Does Kuzma want to play in Dallas alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving? That has yet to be determined, but we can certainly see how such a situation would appeal to Kuzma, who is entering his prime at 27 years old.
Kuzma is coming off a career-best year where he averaged 21.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 64 games for the Wizards. He would be an excellent stretch-four to pair next to Dereck Lively II as the Mavs attempt to establish themselves as title contenders again.
If the Mavs do get a commitment from Kuzma, here's a sign-and-trade that could work for both sides:
Mavs receive: Kyle Kuzma
Wizards receive: Tim Hardaway Jr., JaVale McGee, 2027 first-round pick (lottery protected)
Stay tuned to DallasBasketball.com for more updates on all things Mavs trade and free agency related in the coming days.
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