How NBA Free Agency Ripple Effects Could Impact Jazz

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – If you are a night owl and love to watch the soap opera Days of our Lives on KSL 5 at 1 a.m. you’ve probably heard the opening phrase over very serious music “Like sands through the hour glass, so are the days of our lives.”

If the latest Jazz Notes podcast with Jeremiah Jensen and Cleon Wall had a similar beginning it would start “Like a pebble being thrown into a pond, so are the ripples of the NBA off-season for the Utah Jazz.”

That title might need a little work, but the first big ripple in the NBA off-season could come from a huge stone and not small rock in the form of Anthony Davis. The Pelicans are shopping the superstar and would love to have a deal done before the NBA Draft on June 20th.

Could Jazz Be Part Of Davis Trade?

The Jazz are not in the running for Davis, but Jensen believes Utah still could be a player in potential Davis deal since teams, like the Lakers and Knicks, might need some help to get the trade done.

“The Jazz could be involved in a 3 or a 4 team deal. Maybe there is a way for them to benefit from that. But ultimately, where ever Anthony Davis goes, especially if he goes east, that would be great for the Jazz and that will also have a ripple effect. As soon as (Davis) goes somewhere, it will impact the draft and free agency, because players want to play with Anthony Davis.”

Wall believes one of the worst possible Davis deals for the Jazz would be to the Boston Celtics.

“You don’t want to see Kyrie (Irving) stay with the Celtics and Boston trading for (Davis) because that would help the Pelicans out quite a bit.”

Jensen added that the Celtics are the singular team that could swing a deal with a potential star in Jayson Tatum and draft picks that the Pelicans covet. But Davis’ agent Rich Paul basically warned the Celtics not to try and trade for Davis in a recent Sports Illustrated story.

This entire @bySLPrice story on Rich Paul is FANTASTIC, but this may be my favorite part. https://t.co/BKSJI7OuzI pic.twitter.com/nvunUdSKdr

— Jason Schwartz (@JasonSchwartz) June 12, 2019

The next big deal that could affect the Jazz is where Kevin Durant signs next season. Media reports paint a picture that plenty of teams would be willing to sign Durant to a max contract. Durant could also opt in to staying with Golden State after his Achilles injury. Jensen believes KD won’t stay in the Bay Area, even though he may not play a lot for a new team next season. That injury could have a ripple effect on Kyrie Irving and if he signs with the Brooklyn Nets

“If Kevin Durant is not playing next year, does Kyrie still want to go along (and play for the Nets) and if you are Brooklyn, do you want to go along that path?”

Where Durant Should Go

Both Wall and Jensen agreed that the best possible move for the Jazz is to have Durant leave the Western Conference all together. But other big time stars could be moving west in the off-season, like Kahwi Leonard, which Wall said could affect if Utah signing a free agent like Tobias Harris.

“If Anthony Davis ends up with the Lakers and Kahwi Leonard ends up with the Clippers, if I’m Tobias Harris, I’m thinking twice about going to the Western Conference.”  Harris could still get the most money from Philadelphia and a team like Indiana also has cash to spend.

Jensen believes that Harris would make the Jazz a better team, but would not call them NBA title contenders if they signed the versitle forward.  He wants to wait and see the rest of the ripple effects from free agency.

Jensen and Wall also discussed in the podcast the ripple effects of Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, and if the Jazz are going to keep their pick in the upcoming draft.

The Jazz Notes podcast drops at least weekly and can be found at sports.ksl.com, the KSL Newsradio App, Apple Podcasts or other podcast providers.