Bringing Back Alec Burks In Free Agency Could Make Sense For Jazz

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The NBA’s free agency period is just days away and the management at the Utah Jazz has said that the team will be aggressive during this period.

While general manager Justin Zanik made it clear that he plans to pursue some helpful free agents, who the Jazz are targeting and how they’ll make it work salary-wise is not as clear.

As recently as Wednesday night, it was reported that Derrick Favors, for whom the team has a team-option for next season, is going to take calls from teams while he awaits Utah’s decision to keep him or not. The Jazz have until July 6 to pick up his deal or let him go to another team.

The team’s free agency plans all rest on what the Jazz do with Favors. If they bring him back, they’ll have a lot less money to play with, with a mid-level exception of $4.7 million as the primary instrument in signing a free agent.

If Favors’ option is not picked up, the Jazz will have more money, around $17 million, in cap space and therefore could potentially sign a more expensive and hopefully higher quality player.

Joe Ingles flamed former teammate Alec Burks by saying his shoes don't match 😂 pic.twitter.com/Z15JqqjP3c

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 19, 2019

However, if money is tight, there could be an appealing option on the table for the Jazz. They could sign former Jazzman Alec Burks, likely for a very cheap deal.

Burks is just a few months removed from wearing a Jazz uniform. After seven full seasons with Utah, who drafted him with the 12^th overall pick in the 2011 Draft, he was traded in November to Cleveland in a deal for Kyle Korver.

It was the first time that Burks played for an NBA team other than Utah and his second trade came just six weeks later when he was involved in a swap that sent him to Sacramento.

With the Kings, Burks struggled tremendously. He appeared in just 13 games for Sacramento and averaged 1.7 points per game in just 9.8 minutes of action. One Kings-related blog gave Burks straight Fs in its end-of-year player grades.

Alec Burks…RISE UP!https://t.co/Vf2MD8NoCS

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 22, 2015

Last season was the final year of a big deal that Burks signed with Utah back in 2014. He made over $11 million in the 2018-19 season. Hopefully he either enjoyed that wealth or saved it, because he’s likely never going to command that kind of coin on the market again. He has “veteran minimum” written all over him after a poor showing in Sacramento.

It’s likely that he’ll sign a deal for much smaller deal this summer, but he still has a lot to offer. He holds a career average of 9.5 points per game while posting decent shooting averages of 42.3 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from downtown.

However, what should really appeal to Jazz brass more than his on-court value and affordability is his familiarity with Utah.

Alec Burks 😳 pic.twitter.com/BWJyoWDi3N

— NBA (@NBA) November 11, 2017

While he was in a Jazz uniform, it was often said that Burks was one of the most popular and well-liked members of the team. It’s likely that he still has contact with many of his Utah teammates and was seen chatting it up with a few of them when Sacramento came to town towards the end of the regular season.

With focus, Burks can take his extreme athleticism and convert it into becoming a solid defender. He probably won’t ever get back to his peak form, like in a three-year stretch from 2013-16 in which he averaged over 13 points per game, but he can have new life in a second stint in Utah.

There are some injury concerns, as he missed more than 200 games during his time with the Jazz but for a guy of his skill on a potentially super affordable deal, his availability, even if it’s not much, could be worth the risk.

The Jazz are going to need to be creative during free agency to get the most bang for their buck. Sometimes being creative means doing something that has already been done before.

It would be a low-risk, high-reward move to bring back Alec Burks. His No. 10 uniform should be available.