The Utah Jazz were sellers at the NBA trade deadline, but those familiar with the terminology figured that in Utah's case, their most likely trade candidates were Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, and John Collins. Yet, with the NBA trade deadline passed, all remain on the roster.
At first, it appeared that Collins was on his way to Sacramento before the De'Aaron Fox trade request put a kibosh on that. Besides that, there was no legitimate buzz about any of those three going elsewhere at the deadline
This isn't so much about which three teams would regret trading with the Jazz in general as it is about which specific teams would regret passing on acquiring Sexton, Collins, and Sexton separately.
1. Orlando Magic (Collin Sexton)
After impressively persevering through Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner missing a substantial amount of time, the Magic have had a little bit of a freefall, with a lot of it being because those two need time to get back into game shape, and Jalen Suggs is currently out for them.
Though Banchero and Wagner raise Orlando's ceiling as their two best players, Suggs raises their floor, so it's hard for the Magic to keep it all together when he's out. Suggs isn't a star, but he keeps the Magic in games, and his skillset helps compensate for the fact that they don't have much scoring outside of their young, dynamic duo.
That's where having someone like Sexton could help lessen the blow and, furthermore, help raise their ceiling even higher. Knowing the scoring prowess he had, Sexton would have been exactly what they needed to help steady the ship while their two young stars get re-acclimated and get past their injuries.
Sexton has proven that he can be the lead or complementary scorer depending on the Jazz's needs. He would have been overkill on a team that already had enough scoring, but he would have been perfect on a team that doesn't have much of that, like Orlando.
The Magic are a young team on the rise, but having a scoring guard as young and efficient as Sexton would have filled a huge hole for them. The East may not be too strong, but it's not weak enough that the teams at the top won't punish them for their lack of offensive firepower. Sexton could have evened the odds to some extent.
2. Golden State Warriors (John Collins)
The Warriors made perhaps their biggest gamble of the Stephen Curry era when they acquired Jimmy Butler from Miami. In their case, it was a risk worth taking on their end, but it was clear that they needed to make other moves, like an upgrade at the center spot.
They knew this and had a target in mind even before they got Butler - Nikola Vucevic, but it didn't come through. Since they couldn't make that happen, why wasn't Collins the fallback option? Vucevic is a star who's playing fantastically this season. Collins is doing the same. Although not quite at the same level as Vucevic, he is playing like someone a playoff contender could use.
Collins makes a little bit more than Vucevic, for sure, but he's younger, springier, and has experience playing for a winner. He's also a floor-stretching big man, which is primarily why they had such strong interest in Vucevic. Their interest in a floor-spacing big man dates back to last year. Remember when they wanted Lauri Markkanen?
Collins isn't as high-profile or respected as those two, but there's an argument that he would have been a better fit than Vooch. He's a floor-spacer and rebounder, but more than that, he's a lob threat, which Curry and Butler have thrived with in the past.
For all the good Butler gives the Warriors, Collins' presence could have covered up his warts and pushed them up higher in the West echelon.
3. Denver Nuggets (Jordan Clarkson)
The Nuggets are getting good enough production out of esteemed Jazz alum Russell Westbrook that they didn't necessarily have to add another ball-dominant, inefficient guard. However, the fact remains that they still have one of the worst-scoring second units in the NBA.
Clarkson wouldn't have cost them any of their guys, and if the price were right, the Jazz probably would have been more than happy to take some of their bad contracts, like Zeke Nnaji and/or Dario Saric for Clarkson. However, it would have cost Denver some solid draft assets.
That might have been worth it because it's Nikola Jokic, i.e., the best player in the NBA, one of the best players of all time, and a straight-up miracle worker. If he can make things work with an aging Westbrook, he can make it work with Clarkson, no questions asked. Plus, if Denver can get a productive player like Clarkson without compromising their rotation, they should have done it.
Maybe they were wary of Clarkson's potentially clunky fit with Westbrook, but Denver was pretty limited on options. Clarkson could have given them another scorer, taken some offensive pressure off their starters, and, of course, helped them get more bang for their buck from their second unit.
It's very possible that in the coming weeks, it'll be revealed that the Jazz had asked for too much on the open market, and if that's the case, it may not be these team's fault they didn't want to meet Utah's asking price. However, if they don't reach their goals, and they knew they had the chance to do so had they relented with the Jazz, that's going to sting.