2 Jazz trade candidates show out in close loss to Trail Blazers

It's fair to say that this game between the Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers starkly contrasted from the last one. The Jazz fought valiantly in this one, but the Trail Blazers barely pulled it out thanks to a Scoot Henderson buzzer-beater.

It's been mentioned before that this game fits exactly what the Jazz should want in a tanking season. Even if their intention is to lose, they still put an entertaining product out on the floor capable of competing until the very last second. With the loss to the Trail Blazers, that helps prevent Portland from potentially catching up to Utah in the tanking standings.

An added bonus from games like this is that it can make potential Jazz trade candidates look even better to interested parties. In this game, the two biggest standouts were Svi Mykhailiuk and Drew Eubanks.

Both upped their trade value even more

Mykhailiuk got the starting nod because Jordan Clarkson and John Collins were absent. It really feels like every time they give him some burn, he not only doesn't disappoint, but he plays so well that many wonder, "Why isn't this guy playing more?" and "How did this guy end up with the Jazz?"

While it's not like Svi had the most sterling reputation beforehand, it is shocking that no playoff team tried to see what he was made of, Here we are, and he has yet another awesome performance, putting up 18 points thanks to six threes, which led to him having a team-high plus/minus with plus-16.

Eubanks also looked downright amazing. Though he didn't have the same luck with plus-minus, he still took the reins as the backup big and ran with it, putting up a perfect six-for-six from the field, which included a three(?!).

Neither typically gets considered potential trade candidates primarily because neither could net the returns that Clarkson, Collins, or Sexton could get. However, they've played well enough that if and when the Jazz kick their rebuild into overdrive, who's to say they couldn't get something back for them?

Even if that something wouldn't count for much, both have proven impressive finds on the Jazz's part.

They could also help make trading bigger fish easier

Because both Mykhailiuk and Eubanks are on team-friendly contracts, including them in potential trades involving the three aforementioned players could make them more appealing for trade partners.

Teams want players that can round out rotations. While the Jazz have players who could improve other teams' ceilings available to acquire, adding other players like Mykhailiuk and/or Eubanks could be satisfactory sweetener in a trade.

If Utah plans to trade Mykhailiuk and Eubanks, neither would fetch much back on their own. However, including them in a bigger trade could improve the quality or quantity of the picks the Jazz get back for Clarkson, Collins, or Sexton.

It's not like the Jazz are desperate for more draft capital, but if there's a chance to get more for guys who didn't have much value coming into the season, it'd be hard to pass on such an opportunity.