NBA trade season is here, so who are the Jazz willing to part with?

The NBA’s trade season kicked into unofficial gear this week, as the summer’s free agents became trade eligible on Dec. 15. As trade rumors begin to swirl, it’s a good time to make sure Utah Jazz fans understand where the team stands, their approach and who they might be willing to part with.

Lauri Markkanen

Before I get to the rest of the team, I’d like to first address a report from Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer that has made some Jazz fans start to feel a bit anxious. There are two sections from Fischer’s article that are important.

He notes that the Jazz’s rough start to the season has prompted opposing teams to call the Jazz in order to gauge what it would take to land All-Star Lauri Markkanen.

“The Jazz are by no means expected to trade the 7-foot sharpshooter at this juncture,” Fischer writes. “He’s been a true favorite of Jazz officials, sources said. But Utah has indeed left opposing executives with the sense that Markkanen is no longer untouchable in trade conversations.”

The important takeaway from what Fischer says here is that it is opposing teams that feel like there might be a price at which Markkanen can be had.

This second part from Fischer’s article, a quote from a non-Jazz executive, explains what that price could be.

“Do I expect Utah to trade Lauri? No,” a general manager told Yahoo Sports. “But they are saying they’re willing to listen. They are willing to listen to calls on everyone, but it’s a matter of meeting their price like Minnesota did for Rudy (Gobert).”

Jazz CEO Danny Ainge and general manager Justin Zanik have maintained the position over the last couple of years, that it is their duty and responsibility to listen to any and all offers that might come their way.

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The quote in Fischer’s article backs up that position. And, before Jazz fans start to believe that the team is looking to trade away Markkanen, pay attention to the fact that the price for Markkanen would be huge.

Are the Jazz willing to listen to offers for everyone? Yes. But that doesn’t mean that there would be an offer good enough for them to part with Markkanen. The Jazz love Markkanen and they want him to be a part of their future and believe that they can retain him longterm.

In conversations about Markkanen, team sources have given no indication that they are wanting to move on from Markkanen and that it would take quite a haul to have them seriously entertaining an offer.

Keepers

While making sure to keep in mind that everyone has a price and the Jazz are technically willing to listen to offers on everyone, there are players on the current Jazz roster that the team would prefer to have as they look toward the future.

Markkanen is at the top of this list and is followed by young players Keyonte George, Walker Kessler, Ochai Agbaji and Taylor Hendricks.

The Jazz have lucked into George being NBA-ready this season and the fact that he took over starting point guard minutes eight games into the season is a good sign that the Jazz are invested in him.

It’s obvious that the Jazz like what they have in Kessler and Agbaji, especially considering their age, but it might not be so obvious on the outside that the Jazz are heavily invested in Hendricks.

The No. 9 overall pick from the 2023 draft has started out the season in the G League and has had opportunities with the Jazz in limited minutes, but the Jazz were prepared for Hendricks to take a slow development path. They turned down trade offers over the summer that included Hendricks because they believe in his potential, so there’s no reason to think that they’ve changed their tune on him yet.

Available

There are a lot of players on the Jazz roster that the team would probably be willing to part with. Do they like Kris Dunn and Simone Fontecchio? Absolutely. Would players like that be put into a trade in order to make a deal work? Yes. But those are not the players that would be the centerpiece of a Jazz trade. So, who would those players be?

There’s no reason to sugarcoat this so I’ll just come right out and say it — John Collins, Talen Horton-Tucker, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson and Kelly Olynyk are, for lack of a better phrase, on the trade block.

Though the Jazz were excited about the prospect of getting Collins from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Rudy Gay and a future second-round pick, he hasn’t performed as well as many would have hoped he would. Because of the size of his contract (he’s got two years and $53 million left on his deal after this season) it could be difficult to move him.

The same can be said for Sexton who is set to make $18 million a year through the 2025-26 season.

Clarkson, who is on a more team-friendly deal that pays him $24 million this year and then a combined $29 million over the next two years, Horton-Tucker, who is on an $11 million expiring deal, and Olynyk, who is on a $12 million expiring contract, could be a lot easier to to move.

The Jazz are trying to think long term when it comes to rebuilding this team, which is why they are willing to listen to offers on all players. But they also know that they have a few key pieces that could really work on a contending team if they were to come across the right players.

Additionally, the Jazz have one of the best, if not the best, chest of draft assets in the league, which makes them a very desirable trade partner. So, as they have been, they will continue to listen to every call that comes in.