Utah Jazz: 3 Rudy Gobert trades that absolutely will not happen

Utah Jazz acquire 2 bluechip prospects in blockbuster

If the Utah Jazz find themselves straddling two convergent timelines between the 24-year-old Donovan Mitchell and the 29-year-old Rudy Gobert, the Golden State Warriors are disrupting the time/space continuum by rostering an aging core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green alongside raw, unpolished youngsters Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman.

Allegedly, the Warriors’ front office has no designs to trade either, but we know that NBA front offices are to be treated like Russian spies in an 80s cold war movie: they are not to be trusted. Here, we’re assuming that at least the possibility of packaging their prospects for a ready-made star like Pascal Siakim looms.

We’re also assuming that the Toronto Raptors are more interested in retooling than rebuilding. Siakim-for-Warriors’ assets formulations have been floating around the internet for a while, to no apparent end. Meanwhile, having recently drafted Scottie Barnes, the Raptors may not see a need to acquire Jonathan Kuminga. Rudy Gobert would solve the roster deficiencies this roster has suffered at the center position since the departures of Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka, and then some.

For the Utah Jazz, any situation wherein they were seeking to rebuild this roster with Donovan Mitchell’s timeline would make this trade a no-brainer. They’re receiving two recent lottery picks, one of whom instantly fills the vacant center position, and another with near limitless potential as a two-way forward. Suddenly, between Mitchell, Kuminga and Wiseman, the Jazz would pivot from win-now contention to having one of the brightest young cores in the NBA.

For the last time: the Utah Jazz will not be trading Rudy Gobert, at the very least, before this year’s trade deadline (and most likely, not then either). Please, consider this a thought experiment: the Jazz’s two centerpieces have certainly failed to co-exist in the past, and the age gap between the two does at least open up possibilities.

The Utah Jazz will enter the 2021-22 NBA season with every intention of playing for the NBA championship, with their 3x Defensive Player of the Year dutifully patrolling the paint. In a different world, any of these 3 trades would represent a course of action worth consideration.