John Collins Trade: Worth Getting Involved?

Should the Oklahoma City Thunder even consider John Collins?

Over the past week, it’s been reported by multiple outlets that Utah Jazz forward John Collins is on the trade block. Like he has been for the majority of his career, the now 26-year-old is available for the right price.

Still on the books for roughly $26 million over the next two seasons, Collins also has a player option for the 2025-26 campaign. This means any team that trades for him will take on his salary for up to two years beyond the current season.

For the Oklahoma City Thunder specifically, Collins theoretically makes sense. For starters, he’s still young enough to fit the timeline of this team. Additionally, he’s a strong power forward that would have the chance to fit well next to Chet Holmgren in the frontcourt offensively. He’s an athletic player with the ability to space the floor vertically and can shoot it from deep. He’s also a solid rebounder, which is a real need for Oklahoma City.

Despite playing a position of need and doing some of the things on the court the Thunder really would benefit from, Collins isn’t worth trading for.

Oklahoma City should continue to stay patient and make moves for players that are a perfect fit and on cheaper deals. Patience has gotten the Thunder this far, and a deal for Collins seems like an impulse move.

Furthermore, he hasn’t proven he can be a consistent winner. In the NBA, producing stats only tells half of the story. In each of the past two seasons, Collins has notched a negative Box Plus/Minus and has proven to not be a core piece in both Atlanta and Utah. In fact, there's been many times in which his team is better with him off the court.

In short, while Collins makes sense on paper for the Thunder, moving assets to acquire him doesn’t make sense right now. Given the Jazz are rebuilding and still don't have interest in making Collins a piece of their long-term future, this only further solidifies the point.

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