The Utah Jazz made a good call getting most of the Los Angeles Lakers' draft capital in exchange for Walker Kessler, but that doesn't change the fact that there's a void at the center spot that they just can't ignore. For the time being, they will rely on the center-by-committee approach headed by Jusuf Nurkic and Jaxson Hayes to replace Kessler.
But everyone knows that those two, or any of the other Jazz bigs for that matter, aren't Kessler. There isn't a player out there that can fully replace what he brought, but there are players who can do some of the things he did.
For example, Nurkic will replace Kessler's abilities as a rebounder. Hayes will replace his abilities as a lob threat and a rim protector (kind of). If the Jazz want someone who can further help with rim protection, Brook Lopez can fill the part.
The Los Angeles Clippers are in a bit of a freefall thanks to the Kawhi Leonard disaster that finally unfolded yesterday. Their future is pretty much screwed, but the best way they can salvage it is by acquiring as many picks as they can with their current roster, even if that means increasing the odds of giving another team a high lottery pick.
Brook Lopez could fetch them something. Even in his late-30s, Lopez provides floor-spacing and rim protection, something the Jazz are in short supply of these days thanks to the Kessler trade. Better yet, he's cheap, making slightly less than $9 million.
He can't play as much as he used to, but Lopez is still good at what he does. Because Utah's current goal to replace Kessler is to have multiple guys bring some aspects of what he did individually, Lopez helps in that regard, though like Nurkic and Hayes, he doesn't replace everything Kessler brought to the team.
Lopez doesn't solve their rebounding woes
Lopez is strictly a floor-spacing shot-blocker and can only play the five these days. Even so, his rebounding has never exactly stood out. That's not going to get better at his age, but the best part is, Utah can compensate for that with Nurkic and/or Hayes if the matchup calls for it.
Therein harkens the beauty of the center-by-committee approach. The Jazz could enter any game being ready for any challenge because of the depth they have, which would get stronger if they were to add Lopez. He's one of the rare players who is quite good at what he does, even if that's all he really can do these days.
Utah also has some spare assets lying around to trade if they wanted to. Acquiring the Laker's valuable first-round assets makes the other ones the Jazz still have even more expendable. The Clippers are running low on options, so it's probably in their best interest to salavge as much as they can.
Lopez has his imperfections, but he would be a very understandable addition if the Jazz really want to replace Kessler the best way they can. At least, temporarily.
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