Former NBA star Gilbert Arenas went on his podcast No Chill With Gilbert Arenas to discuss the blockbuster trade the Utah Jazz made with Minnesota, sending All-NBA center Rudy Gobert away in return for four first-round picks and a bunch of role players.
Utah Jazz: Franchise blasted by Gilbert Arenas
Arenas was not a fan of the trade, suggesting Utah got back nothing more than “hot garbage” for one of the best centers in the league. While it is true that there were no instant impact players included in the deal, I believe Arenas is way off base and perhaps doesn’t even understand how NBA teams win.
"“Those things are just things, at this point. It’s Utah. The only thing good in Utah is Spiderman and Dwayne Wade. You throw in a bunch of nothing, hot nothing. No one in Utah is like, ‘we got a whole lot of great,’ no, they aren’t happy”"
While it’s true that none of the players included in the deal are All-Stars, Arenas fails to understand that the Timberwolves will not be good forever. Sure, the picks in 2023 and 2025 might be in the latter part of the first round, but who can say where the Wolves will be in 2027 and 2029? Those could turn into lottery picks. The likelihood of Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Anthony Edwards all producing at a high level in the Gopher State together for the better part of a decade is absurd.
On top of two potentially great draft picks, the Jazz also received Walker Kessler, who could be a solid center for many years to come. Drafted just this season, he is basically the equivalent of a fifth first-round draft pick.
Arenas is right about one thing: the Jazz won’t be as good in 2023 as they were in 2022, but there are plenty of reasons for fans to be hopeful. I’m not sure why Arenas and his cohost Josiah Johnson pretend to be experts on the current NBA landscape. One filmed the podcast in a full minivan and the other was wearing a Big Baller Brand shirt. I don’t pretend to be an expert, but at least I have a degree of self-respect.