Four realistic trade targets for the Utah Jazz

Utah Jazz acquire forward David Nwaba

Any Utah Jazz fan reading this article may be feeling pangs of disappointment at this stage in the article. We’ve just linked them to two significantly more productive players than David Nwaba. This is a player who owns a 17.6% conversion rate on three-point attempts in 2021-22 to date. He’s managing a meager 10.8 minutes per game on a sub-.500 Houston Rockets squad. Why would he appeal to the Utah Jazz?

Well, the absence of significant draft capital in the Jazz’s war chest becomes especially relevant here. The Jazz could part with another future first-round pick and a young asset in pursuit of a bigger splash, but alternatively, they could probably acquire Nwaba at a much smaller cost.

Furthermore, he does fit the description of a defensive minded wing. His 0.9 DBPM this year is solid, but it probably sells Nwaba a bit short, as might his career mark of 0.4. Plus/minus stats can be impacted by who a player is sharing the floor with, and Nwaba has been on losing teams for virtually his entire NBA career.

It could be worth taking a flier to see how he responds to a winning environment. Nwaba’s reputation on the defensive end exceeds the metrics, and the eye test points to a hard working, intelligent team defender. He may even shoot the ball more accurately alongside better spacing.

On the other hand, he may not. Still, it may be worth the Jazz’s time to find out if they’re not comfortable parting with another first round pick this season.