Utah Jazz debate series: three ways Utah won the Gobert trade

The Utah Jazz came into the 2022 off-season with the seemingly inevitable task of trading either Rudy Gobert or Donovan Mitchell, and in line with reports, it was the Frenchman who was dealt. There was plenty of debate as to what the return for a three-time Defensive Player of the Year would be, but it turns out that it was a group of young players, led by Patrick Beverley and Malik Beasley, as well as five first round draft picks.

The Jazz will now be looking to move forward with Mitchell as the clear star and leader of the franchise, but after nine seasons with Utah, it’s a good idea to pay tribute to the star defensive center. Gobert was a warrior and a constant defensive presence for this squad, and his departure comes with both negative and positive ramifications.

Today we are taking a look at the positive outcome of this trade, and why ultimately, moving Gobert this off-season was a good move for him, Mitchell and the entire future of the Utah Jazz franchise.

3. Trade capital to find a win now piece, or move into rebuild mode

This was perhaps the biggest factor in moving Rudy Gobert, as the Jazz were able to acquire a stockpile of draft picks, which they can use to add different, more fitting pieces to this team to make a run, or, they can simply move Donovan Mitchell, and have a gigantic haul of draft picks going forward. Either way, moving Gobert was necessary, and to get five first round draft picks in return was better than anyone could have expected, and now it opens up the future of the Jazz to go in whichever direction Danny Ainge and the front office desire.

Like the rest of the NBA, the Utah Jazz are waiting to see what happens with Kevin Durant’s trade situation, but once that clears up, there are many targets that the Jazz can look to acquire with all this newfound draft capital. Whether Utah look to make moves to win now or whether they want to completely rebuild the franchise and move on from Donovan Mitchell, the astronomical haul in the Rudy Gobert trade is what made this possible, and is one of the biggest reasons why this was such a win for Utah.