Utah Jazz: Eight potential trade targets (and how realistic they truly are)

Nikola Mirotic

Of all the players on this eight-person list, Nikola Mirotic seems the absolute most likely to be dealt. He has plenty of value, a very manageable contract, has made it clear he’d like to be traded and his Chicago Bulls team would probably be better off building for the future rather than allowing Mirotic’s electrifying play to simply will them into mediocrity.

And given that he’s eligible to be traded on January 15th, his departure from the Windy City could be coming sooner rather than later. It’s a near certainty that Mirotic will be sporting a different jersey before this year’s trade deadline.

I already covered in detail my thoughts on the Jazz pursuing Mirotic, which you can read via the link in the tweet below, so I won’t go too crazy here, but the following are my overall thoughts.

In terms of fit, Mirotic could very well be an awesome piece for the Jazz as he’d serve as a reliable stretch-four option that would likely coexist quite well alongside Rudy Gobert. His contract is also low-risk since it has a team option in year two, meaning that if the Mirotic experiment didn’t work out, the Jazz could just cut their losses. There’s honestly a lot to like about adding him to the Jazz fold.

However, I have concerns about him reverting back to his poor shooting from last season and that his recent play could be little more than a spike. While there’s no way of knowing exactly what opportunities will be out there, I also worry that if Utah pulls the trigger on Mirotic, they might miss out on better options closer to the deadline or this summer.

In all honesty, though, while I think the Jazz swinging for Mirotic is somewhat realistic, I also have a hard time believing that Utah has much that the Bulls would want to take on. Favors or Johnson’s expiring contracts might be attractive for some teams, but since Mirotic has a team option for next year, that doesn’t really buy them much.

My guess is that Chicago will want picks more than any sort of talent that will boost them in a lost year and I would venture that Utah will be hesitant to give up much in that regard for Mirotic.

In short, if Mirotic was just magically plopped on Utah’s roster, I’d be perfectly happy with it. And while I believe he will be traded, I’m just not sure if there’s a mutually beneficial agreement between Utah and Chicago that will actually take place, though I do believe that Nikola Mirotic is a guy on the Jazz’s radar that they’ve likely at least inquired about.