Unrestricted Free Agent
Derrick Favors: TBD
The largest decision facing the Utah Jazz this offseason will be whether or not to re-sign big man Derrick Favors. He’s an unrestricted free agent, which means that the Jazz have no special hold on him. If he has a desire to play outside of Utah, perhaps with a team that will give him a larger role in the offense, that is his decision.
Favors has expressed his love for Utah and the Jazz organization, but has also commented on the struggles to find his role within the team. During his exit interview, Favors said this —
"“I enjoyed this year,” Favors told the room. “I enjoyed my whole time in Utah. I fell in love with the city, with the organization, with you guys (the media), but my role definitely changed this year. It was something I wasn’t expecting at first, but I kind of had to just adjust to it and deal with it and find a way to contribute on the court.”"
Kind of a mixed message, and leaves a lot of uncertainty for what direction Favors is leaning. In all honesty, it’s a big decision, and he may not know yet.
For the Jazz, however, they have already stated that bringing back Favors is going to be their first priority. Looking around at the open market, there aren’t a ton of suitors for his services this offseason. Not many teams are looking for a traditional power forward who doesn’t really stretch the floor.
From what I am hearing, it’s not likely that Favors is going to be able to get a long-term deal, but will instead have to sign a short-term deal, as many teams want to maintain flexibility for next year’s free agency. A few teams are interesting, and have the cap room to offer a one-year deal worth more than the Jazz may be comfortable offering.
I was told through a source today that Utah Jazz forward Derrick Favors has set up a "few" free agent meetings. He is currently vacationing until the meetings begin after July 1. Favors loves Utah but his goal is to go through the process to see what situation is best for him.
— Eric Woodyard (@E_Woodyard) June 27, 2018
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The Atlanta Hawks have been brought up by many people, as Favors’ hometown team, and they could pair him with John Collins in the frontcourt. If the LA Lakers can’t land one of the major free agents, they could move on from Brook Lopez by offering Favors a contract similar to what they offered Kentavious Caldwell-Pope last year (one-year, $18 million).
The Charlotte Hornets have also become interesting, because without Dwight Howard, they may be looking to add another big man to their rotation.
In the end, I expect Favors to be back with the Jazz on at most a two-year deal. The only caveat to that would be if an unexpected rebuilding team offers him a one-year contract north of $16 million per year, which would be hard for the Jazz to match.