The Golden State Warriors know the Stephen Curry window is closing. They've tried to compensate by adding Jimmy Butler, and for the most part, it looked like they bet on the right horse. That was until Butler tore his ACL, putting their title aspirations in jeopardy. The Utah Jazz could come to help, but it would likely cost the
That's right, Jazz fans, we're talking about this again. Markkanen and the Warriors is a subject that dates back almost two years now. The deal never happened because Draymond Green, comically, convinced the Warriors not to trust Danny Ainge in trade discussions. Even if he's not wrong about that, desperate times call for desperate measures, no?
But would the Jazz entertain a trade idea like this again? The narrative on a Markkanen trade has been the same: he's not going anywhere unless the Jazz get an offer they can't refuse. Enter the Warriors.
The San Francisco Standard's Tim Kawakami floated the idea of the Jazz sending Markkanen to the Warriors in which they would have to send all three of their remaining first-round picks with either Butler to match salaries or Jonathan Kuminga plus other players (likely Brandin Podziemski, Moses Moody, and/or Al Horford).
Why do the Jazz do it? To answer, Kawakami asked some pretty thoughtful rhetorical questions.
"Does Markkanen, who’s having a very solid season after a struggle in 2024-25, really want to stick around during Utah’s endless tank? Wouldn’t the Jazz think about cashing out on his value, finally?" Kawakami asked.
Would the ends justify the means?
Markkanen trade proposals have been floated left and right since he came back with the vengeance this season. The one common misunderstanding is that it's inspired by the assumption that Utah is looking for more assets. That's incorrect. They want better assets, not more of them and there's a difference.
Trading Markkanen to the Warriors could salvage what's left of the Curry era for sure, but how many years does Curry have left as one of the NBA's best players? On the wrong side of 30, Golden State time is almost up. In fact, Butler's injury is the one non-Curry setback they couldn't afford to endure.
For that reason, *if* the Jazz were willing to part with Markkanen and were willing to play hardball, the Warriors' three first-round picks would not only have to offered but also unprotected just to get Utah's attention. Start with that, and Ainge won't hang up.
Green is right that Ainge knows how to fleece, and he would do everything in his power to ensure that in trade talks with the Warriors. For the Jazz to agree, they would have to be confident that the Warriors are on the verge of crumbling and that they could in good position to find talent as good, if not better, than Markkanen.
No, this is not a terrific deal, but Utah could do much worse.
Grade: B-