John Collins is among the players the Utah Jazz will likely try to trade in the coming weeks before the NBA trade deadline. Collins has done a 180 this season in terms of his production. He's been a good soldier and he's been productive when he's on the floor.
That's why many believe the Jazz will trade him the first chance they get. That is, as long as they don't have to give up assets or hurt their cap flexibility to do it. Collins' value is high enough that the Jazz could trade him without worrying about that, even if they won't get much back for him. That certainly wasn't the case when the season started.
But what could be the most optimistic trade return for Collins? The Jazz could trade him for lesser players on smaller contracts, or they could trade him for younger players on longer contracts. Bleacher Report's Greg Swartz proposed a trade that would fit the latter description.
He proposed the following deal between the Jazz and Bulls.
Bulls receive: Collins
Jazz receive: Patrick Williams and Jevon Carter
Swartz explained Williams' appeal to the Jazz.
"The breakout for Williams has never come now five years into his promising career. Still just 23, this is the type of player a franchise like Utah should take a chance on.
"Williams is a career 40.2 percent shooter from three with a 7-foot wingspan that could be molded into a good two-way player with time and in the right system. The Jazz have a terrific coaching staff and should be able to bring the best out of Williams."
To be fair, the Jazz have taken former Bulls lottery picks and turned them into All-Stars (see Markkanen, Lauri), so maybe they'd try their hand at doing it again with Williams. However, it's not exactly a slam dunk for two reasons.
Why Williams doesn't have much trade value
Besides never really breaking out as the player the Bulls hoped he would be, Williams has never been the healthiest player, and his contract is very long. While Collins' contract expires in 2026, Williams' runs until 2029. It's not like he's badly overpaid since he'll make $18 million annually for the next five years, but that is quite the deal to swallow.
At 23 years old, though, there is some intrigue to Williams. He fits the Jazz's rebuilding timeline and could slot as their starting small forward of the future. If the Jazz did a deal like this, it would be because they believe he'd be worth taking a flyer on, and they could very well be fishing for projects like those.
Plus, taking flyers on a young player who hasn't lived up to their billing hasn't been the worst idea for the Jazz. Lauri Markkanen's unforeseen success with them since 2022 shows that. However, it all depends on the player they'd take a flyer on.
The other day, Collin Sexton was floated in a trade to the Denver Nuggets where Utah would take flyers on multiple young players. The problem with that trade is that it's investing long-term money in multiple youngsters who haven't proven much, if not anything, in the NBA.
Williams is a different story. As the No. 4 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, it's fair to say he hasn't lived up to expectations, but it's not too late for him just like it wasn't for Markkanen. If his contract wasn't so big, this would be an easy move to make for the Jazz, especially for Collins.
But if it was shorter, it would likely take more than Collins, plus the Bulls may have a potential bidding war for Williams. The Jazz would be currently getting the lesser player from this deal, but they would be getting someone who fits a position of need and has the potential to reach another level or two.
Grade: B