So NBA teams have officially been able to contact players and agree on deals for about a week now, and it has been a pretty busy week for just about everybody involved, especially the Utah Jazz. So how has my favorite team handled this turbulent period under new GM Dennis Lindsey?
I'll start with the smallest thing first. Earl Watson went to Portland, saying he wants to mentor one of the league's best young point guards — Damian Lillard. So Trey Burke's not one of the league's best young point guards? I know Watson didn't mean that — I just couldn't help myself. I will miss him a little bit, but really I think he should've retired and become an assistant coach somewhere. But hey, if an NBA team is willing to pay you to be a player, how could you refuse?
The next thing, which was pretty big, was Al Jefferson going to Charlotte. I wanted him to leave Utah, and I think this will be better for both sides. I had heard right from the start that Big Al was thinking about the Bobcats, but I was still a little surprised when I heard he was going there. I thought he'd wait to see who got Dwight Howard and then try to market himself as a Plan B or Plan C to teams needing a big man. I thought Dallas might be a good spot for him, but then I remembered the Mavericks need a defensive big man to pair with Dirk Nowitzki, and defense is something Al Jefferson doesn't spend much effort on. In Charlotte, Big Al will return to his early NBA roots of being the undisputed leading scorer on a team with low expectations. Or, in other words, he's going to put up big numbers on a losing team. And you know what? That's perfectly fine for him. Not all NBA players care about winning (despite what they say) and being a big fish in a little pond is not a bad choice.
The Jazz then renounced the rights to Jefferson and Paul Millsap to clear salary space for the monster trade with the Warriors. The Warriors made this first monster trade in hopes to make a second monster trade for Dwight Howard, but that never happened. Instead they had to settle on Andre Iguodala. To acquire him, they dumped a couple of large expiring contracts on the Jazz in the forms of Richard Jefferson, Andris Biedrins and Brandon Rush. As reward for taking on these ghastly contracts, the Jazz were given unprotected first round picks in 2014 and 2017, as well as a couple of second round picks. And all Utah had to give up was Kevin Murphy.
First, the price. Al Jefferson and Millsap were already gone. It's kind of tough, but necessary for all parties involved. So officially renouncing them was no big deal. Kevin Murphy is a little different, however, as he was still under contract and could have potentially played a part in Utah youth movement this year. He wasn't really given much of a chance last year, and I'll honestly be very surprised if he's given any playing this year in Golden State. He doesn't seem that good of a player, but it would've been nice to be able to confirm that. But ultimately, the Jazz gave up virtually nothing for three players and four draft picks. But what exactly are we getting back in these three guys?
Richard Jefferson was a lottery pick out of Arizona who enjoyed seven productive seasons with the New Jersey Nets, including the teams that made back-to-back appearances in the Finals. Jefferson peaked in 2005 with 22 points and 7 rebounds per game. But things eventually fell apart in New Jersey, and Jefferson was traded to Milwaukee. He only lasted one season there before being sent to San Antonio. This, at first, seemed like the perfect fit, but he ended up being a huge underachiever on a couple of Spurs teams that underachieved in the playoffs. Eventually the Spurs got sick of him and sent him to Golden State, where he saw his minutes and production plummet. Last season, in just 56 games, Jefferson averaged 10.6 mpg and 3.1 ppg. He is not expected to do anything this year.
Andris Biedrins was a lottery pick from Riga, Latvia, and has spent his entire career in Golden State. He was a promising prospect, especially in 2008 with 12 ppg and 11 rpg, but everything quickly went downhill after that. Injuries could have played a factor in this — he's only had one 82-game season, and that was 2006-07. But I also think Biedrins' downfall can be attributed to the natural, and glaring, flaws in his game, most notably foul trouble and free throw shooting. Now, he is .503 for his career, but it's hard to overlook seasons of .160 and .111. Of course, in those seasons, he went 4-of-25 and 1-of-9, respectively, but that kind of proves the point. When a player can't make a free throw, they do whatever they can to avoid being fouled and sent to the line. This is a major hindrance, and it leads to low minutes, DNPs, and rosters hampered by massive salaries. Last year, Biedrins appeared in 53 games at 9.3 mpg and 0.5 ppg. It is likely those numbers will be repeated in Utah.
Brandon Rush was also lottery pick, this time from Kansas. He's a pretty good shooter, and enjoyed three promising seasons in Indiana before being traded to Golden State. In 2011-12, he put up just under 10 ppg and shot over 45 percent from 3-point range. But then he got hurt, and could only play in two games last year. Now, his agent claims he'll be completely healthy and ready to go opening day, and I'd like to believe that, but you never know how well someone can recover from an ACL injury. However, there is a slight chance that he will become a valuable player for the Jazz. Worst case scenario, he's just another expiring contract we have to endure for a season like Jefferson and Biedrins.
Immediately after this trade went through, Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll both went to Atlanta. I loved Millsap while he was here, but as I've said before and will keep reminding myself, it was time for him to go. But if his fantasy basketball career has taught me anything, it's that you don't want to give up on Paulsap. However, I do think he'll have the same problems playing alongside Al Horford that he had with Al Jefferson. It's not a very promising situation for him. Carroll was somebody I wouldn't have minded keeping, but I'm not really sad now that he's gone. Maybe it's because I got sick of following him on Twitter. Literally every single of his tweets included the hashtags #Blessed and #JunkYardDog. I've never heard anybody call him Junk Yard Dog. I think you need to do something more to earn that nickname.
So now the only free agents the Jazz have left are Randy Foye, Jamaal Tinsley and Mo Williams. I've heard Foye is close to agreeing with Denver, which would be a bit of a bummer to lose a good shooter like him. But if Rush can take his place, then we should be OK. I'd really like Tinsley to stay, but I have heard his name being floated around a few different teams. But I haven't heard anybody talk about Mo Williams. I guess nobody wants him. I sure don't want him. The Jazz aren't done yet shaping the roster (they still need a backup point guard and power forward), but they essentially are thanks to this big trade.
So what does all this mean? Well, theoretically, by locking up the roster with crappy players, the Jazz will be "forced" to play their young guys to develop them, all while losing plenty of games to get a high draft pick. Although Golden State's pick won't be very high, the Jazz could package it with their to jump higher in the 2014 draft, which reportedly is going to be the best draft of all time ever. Plus, the Jazz will have tons of cap space in the most loaded and wonderful free agent class that ever was conceived in the existence of professional basketball. Then the stars will align, the lamb will lie with the lion and the Jazz will win the championship.
OK, what does this trade really mean? In an ideal world, Utah's coach would bury Jefferson and Biedrins on the bench, only using them in spurts to give the young, promising guys a breather. But I don't trust Utah's coach. Tyrone Corbin has often fallen prey to giving the veterans too much playing time, like Raja Bell and Marvin Williams. It seems whenever I caught the Jazz on TV last year, I'd be perplexed with Corbin's rotations. Now, if Jefferson and Biedrins have miraculous revivals, then I'd be more than OK with giving them some playing time. But that is highly unlikely. More likely, is Corbin will give them too much time and we'll suffer through a frustratingly mishandled tanking season.
That brings me to my next point. Tanking is never fun, especially when it comes so quickly after the last "plan for the future." It was supposed to be Al Jefferson, but he only took us to one playoff series, and we got swept. So now we're blowing it all up, and this is where the we shifts into the they, especially if the future isn't as promising as it should be. What if Derrick Favors can't make the leap? What if Enes Kanter can't refine his game? What if Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks have already maxed out, and what if Trey Burke is a bust? All these things have to be considered and I hope the Jazz have contingency plans in place. Yes, there is a lot of hope now, but that's all there is. Hope. Nothing concrete. I can be patient for a little bit, maybe two years, but I'm growing tired of being patient. Since 2007, the Jazz have been on a wild and frustrating roller coaster ride. This franchise used to be a pillar of stability. Let's return to that standard.
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