Utah Jazz: 5 target players to pair with Donovan Mitchell
By Caleb Manser
Nuggets guards
Wouldn’t it be great if the Utah Jazz were able to find Donovan Mitchell’s backcourt complement straight from the Denver Nuggets roster?
Mitchell himself was drafted by Denver, but because they already had Jamal Murray and Gary Harris on board, they opted to trade the pick and take a stab at Trey Lyles and Tyler Lydon.
If you follow Twitter guru and contributor for The J-Notes Lucas Miller on Twitter, then you probably know how he feels about the Jazz pairing Mitchell with Jamal Murray.
I've been on this one, lately ...
— Lucho (@EchelonCopy) February 20, 2020
I'd love to see a Donovan Mitchell and Jamal Murray backcourt in Salt Lake City. Certainly more size than Mike Conley and a young (only 22 years old) knock-down shooter from just about anywhere, as well.
Too bad Denver won't ever let go of him. https://t.co/gvyJi9Jvcq
Since he’s on a max contract though, I will be looking at two more realistic names today. Namely, Gary Harris and Torrey Craig.
Harris this season has been a real downer for a Nuggets squad hoping to make a deep playoff run. Previously he could be counted on as a 3-and-D option that plays smart and unselfish basketball.
Harris has two more years and 39.6 million dollars left on his contract, so in theory he could be bought at a low price right now given his stock value. He doesn’t turn 26 until this September, and I’d say he’s a low-risk player that will likely start playing like his normal self soon.
And as for Torrey Craig, he’s a name hardly anyone outside of Denver has heard of. He’s really flown under the radar in his two year career riding the bench in the mile high city, especially given their log jam of talent at virtually every position.
Craig signed a two-way contract beginning in 2018-19, and worked his way up as a role player. He is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and I bet given more opportunity and playing time, he could be a real wrecking ball shutting down opposing guards.
In fact, when the Jazz played the Nuggets in back-to-back weeks last month, Craig was the main culprit for shutting down Donovan Mitchell. He held the All-Star to only four points on 12 shots the first night, and 18 points on 24 shots the other night.
The Jazz’s struggles for containing small, quick guards has been well documented, which is why they should seriously consider signing Craig this offseason.