The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz insider sees D’Angelo Russell and Kevin Porter Jr. as potential trade targets and yikes

By Chad Porto

HOUSTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 05: Kevin Porter Jr. #3 of the Houston Rockets controls the ball ahead of Lauri Markkanen #23 of the Utah Jazz during the first half at Toyota Center on January 05, 2023 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 05: Kevin Porter Jr. #3 of the Houston Rockets controls the ball ahead of Lauri Markkanen #23 of the Utah Jazz during the first half at Toyota Center on January 05, 2023 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images) /
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The Utah Jazz are being tied to two of the more mercurial guards in the NBA with D’Angelo Russell and Kevin Porter Jr.

It’s fair to say the Utah Jazz’s point guard situation is far from a stable one. The team has four potential starters at the spot, Collin Sexton, Talen Horton-Tucker, Kris Dunn, and Keyonte George. All have a quality that makes them worth starting, but all not having enough qualities to make them the obvious pick.

So the topic of acquiring more guards, and possibly landing an All-Star potential point guard has been the buzz around town for longer than you’d think. This has left many fans wondering about who the Jazz could realistically land. They have the assets but do they want to ship them off for an aging point guard?

Well, maybe, maybe not but Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune (via Lakers Daily), thinks that D’Angelo Russell and Kevin Porter Jr. are names the Jazz have eyes on saying;

"At the point guard position, though, there are more limited obvious options. I suppose the Jazz could trade for 19th-ranked D’Angelo Russell, but he found his way out of major playoff minutes by the conference finals last year. Maybe 24th-ranked Kevin Porter Jr. is a young option, but is not exactly a team-first player. I don’t like those choices."

It’s good to hear that Larsen isn’t a fan of the choices. Russell and Porter Jr. are far from quality point guards and while Porter can score, he’s shown in his time in Cleveland Houston that he isn’t a reliable asset on or off the court.

For Russell, he’s just not a starter. Not really. His skillset doesn’t make teams better, and he’s not so good of a scorer that he can be a guy who takes 15 shots a night across 30+ minutes. There aren’t better available options out there beyond those two; as we speak, so the Jazz need to do the obvious thing and stand pat.

Maybe Dunn can surprise us, maybe Sexton can become a better version and more predictable version of Porter, or maybe George is a young Russell Westbrook in the making (with a better jumper). Rushing out to get mid-tier guards when this team is filled with potential would be foolish.

Next. 3 interesting but not great trade proposals for the Utah Jazz. dark