It's both fun and mind-blowing to think of the dominoes that formed the Utah Jazz's current roster. As I went over recently, trading for Russell Westbrook in 2023 ultimately helped play a part in the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade, which is sure to pay off big time. As every Jazz fan should also know, the Donovan Mitchell trade played a part in that as well.
Utah sent Memphis multiple conditional assets involving the ones Cleveland sent over, as they could potentially be sent in exchange for JJJ. However, that's not all the dominoes that have fallen since the Cavaliers traded for Mitchell.
There's obviously Lauri Markkanen, who has worked out spectacularly since he became a Jazzman, but there's also one other player who has become a keeper because of the Mitchell trade, even if it was indirect: Jusuf Nurkic.
Obviously, Nurkic was not part of the original deal, but Collin Sexton was. After three years with Utah, it was clear he was not a long-term solution for the Jazz, so they traded him for Nurkic, which drew a lot of confusion at the time.
However, one year later, everyone in Utah couldn't be more excited to have Nurk back.
Nurkic could be part of the next memorable Jazz team
Now in his early 30s, Nurkic already isn't the player he was in Portland, but in his half-season as a Jazzman, he proved there was more left in the tank than many he believed he did because of his disastrous stint in Phoenix and inconsequentially brief stint in Charlotte.
Nurkic left a good enough impression that Utah brought him back at the first chance they could. Better yet, the Walker Kessler trade signaled their confidence that Nurkic could do his part to compensate for Kessler's absence.
It's not like Utah's hopes this season hinge on him, but they brought him back expecting him to be part of something special, even though many had written him off in 2025. He can't do as much as he could at his peak, but Nurk is still a big body that can get rebounds and make the right pass.
Utah made the most out of a situation many feared they would get very little when they swapped Sexton for Nurkic. While his time in Utah won't be for very long, Nurkic proved enough last season to be an important piece of the team the Jazz want to build.
And technically speaking, it would not have been possible without the Donovan Mitchell trade.
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