CHARLOTTE, NC – NOVEMBER 30: Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz watches on before their game against … [+]
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The Utah Jazz seemed to indicate that they were willing to rebuild when they shipped out Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves for a haul. The rhetoric out of Utah was that they had “no intent” on trading franchise star Donovan Mitchell after that move was made. The noise from Mitchell’s camp seemed to indicate that he won’t yet ask out of Utah. Regardless, the time has come now where the jazz are listening to offers on Mitchellwhich does not mean the team is shopping the 26-year-old —the key differentiator in terms of preserving public opinion.
Since it is that time in the NBA to hypothesize trades, let’s take a look at the packages and teams that make the most sense for Mitchell.
New York Knicks
Trade package courtesy of Fanspo
Thomas Rende
The Knicks are the most logical landing spot for Donovan Mitchell at this stage of the game. They have been “star hunting” for years and have accumulated an asset base that puts them in position to make a run at a top end talent in the NBA.
The recent report from Ian Begley is that the team has no interest in moving RJ Barrett and that the Jazz are prioritizing draft compensation in any deal. Five 1st round picks seem sufficient enough, especially if two of them are unprotected picks from the Knicks.
Julius Randle is probably the player most people would proclaim that the Jazz would not take back in a trade. That could be true, but Danny Ainge may view it as an asset play that could allow the organization to net more in return if he played well on a tanking team.
Miles McBride could capitalize from getting more minutes on a rebuilding team. Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes would be the centerpieces of the trade, though. The Knicks were hesitant to move Quickly toward last year’s trade deadline, but his production toward the end of the season shows that the third year guard may have untapped potential that Will Hardy can help unlock. Grimes has shown some more on-ball ability in summer league, which should be something that is explored during the regular season. Apparently, the Jazz are very high on his ability.
Miami Heat
Trade package courtesy of Fanspo
Thomas Rende
The Heat are right behind the Knicks in terms of teams that seem to be well connected to acquiring the young guard. On the surface it seems that Miami is a bit short on assets to acquire Mitchell, but that may be based on how you view Tyler Herro. For instance, Seth Partnow just ranked his tiers and placed Herro in the group between the 60th and 84th best players in the league. Depending on where you think he should fall in that group drastically changes how fair of a value this trade ultimately is.
Duncan Robinson is a net negative on his salary, and Max Strus is a great contract to move to gain a 1st round pick. The New Orleans Pelicans are stacked with depth at the moment, but could use an additional shooter on the wing to supplant some of the projected Garrett Temple minutes. The organization’s bevy of picks helps grease the trade wheels to get Donovan to Miami.
Toronto Raptors
Trade package courtesy of Fanspo
Thomas Rende
It’s more than likely that the Raptors stay out of this bidding war in order to preserve their asset base to acquire Kevin Durant. OG Anunoby is the prized jewel in this trade and can either be the main attraction of the next Jazz team, or can be re-routed to another team with the hopes that they can get even more draft equity. Gary Trent Jr. is a player that still holds strong value in the league and can similarly fetch a pretty penny at the trade deadline if the team wanted to move him.
A trade with Toronto isn’t perfect for a number of reasons, one of which is the team that remains after the trade. The ethos of the Raptors centered around switchability and Mitchell’s inclusion to the team prevents that from being a possibility. The offensive firepower and remaining defensive versatility might be enough to sway the Raptors, but it seems that they would pass on trying to push this one through.
Brooklyn Nets
Trade package courtesy of Fanspo
Thomas Rende
Pretty much everyone knows at this point that both Ben Simmmons and Donovan Mitchell cannot be on the same team because both players are on the designated rookie max extension, which prevents a team from having two players on that type of contract. So, in order to make the magic happen it could be possible to shoehorn Mitchell into the possible Kyrie Irving trade discussions.
This deal allows the Nets to start fresh with a face of the franchise, or could allow Durant the pivot he needs to change his mind on a trade request. Either way, the Nets could either try to compete for a championship for a year and re-evaluate after the season. Or move forward with some type of direction and a replenished asset base. The construction team would still be a bit wonky with Westbrook, but that was always a strong possibility in a possible Irving trade.
The Jazz may be looking for better draft equity, but they would be a perfect spot to allow Simmons to try to rebuild his value. They’d have a blank slate and could try to cultivate a team around him in a low pressure environment.
Houston Rockets
Trade package courtesy of Fanspo
Thomas Rende
This is the one team that could jumpstart their rebuild a bit with a move for Mitchell. They have a strong amount of draft picks from the Nets after the James Harden trade and have added a lot of players on rookie scale deals, something that the Jazz are looking for in a trade. The likelihood is that the Rockets wouldn’t be able to compete next season, but they would be more than likely have a solid nucleus going into next summer. The fit between Jalen Green and Mitchell may be too tough to make work for the Rockets to pull the trigger, but it would give the team a bit more direction compared to last year.
The deal would have to wait until the end of the month, but Alperen Sengun would be a strong acquisition for Utah. They’d have a few younger players to develop while creating one of the deepest draft pick treasure troves in the league.
