Yet another trade has gone down, and this is definitely one that the Utah Jazz should be paying attention to. Sure, the Nets continuing to blow up their squad, which first started with the Dennis Schroder trade, is definitely something the Jazz shouldn't ignore since they're now a tanker, but in this particular case, the Jazz should be paying attention for different reasons.
ESPN's Shams Charania reported that the Lakers have traded primarily Collin Sexton for primarily Dorian Finney-Smith. What's notable about the deal is that no first-round picks were involved to get the deal done.
BREAKING: The Los Angeles Lakers have agreed on a trade sending D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton, sources told ESPN. pic.twitter.com/V175zGtmKW
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 29, 2024
This trade is a home run for the Lakers. What Finney-Smith can do and how little they gave up to get him will please the fanbase. However, there's one complication—Russell was their second-best guard, behind only Austin Reaves, and was their second-best guard by a mile.
This was a trade the Lakers had to make, but now there's a hole in their rotation that needs to be addressed and quickly. And who would be an awesome and affordable replacement for Russell? Collin Sexton.
Sexton has been brought up in hypothetical trade scenarios to the Lakers before, and for good reason. He's younger than Russell, more efficient, and has seen an all-around improvement in his game since landing in Utah. Not only does he replace Russell on paper, but he's an all-around upgrade
It's still not entirely clear what the Jazz's long-term plans with Sexton are. He's been brought up again in trade rumors, so what is clear is that he can be had for the right price. Now that the Lakers are sinking their teeth in with their current core, this is an opportunity for the Jazz to score big on more draft capital.
How a deal could work
With Russell no longer a Laker, that removes the easiest player to trade between the Jazz and Lakers for Sexton to make it work contract-wise. However, that doesn't mean a deal couldn't happen. In fact, if longer-term salary is sent back to the Jazz, the likelier it is that they might get more compensation.
A trade for Sexton would likely include Gabe Vincent primarily to help make the contracts work since he makes $10+ million. There have been whispers that the Jazz have interest in Jalen Hood-Schifino, who the Lakers don't plan to keep. Between those two is almost $14 million.
From there, the Lakers have multiple contracts they could include for salary-matching purposes, including Jaxson Hayes, Cam Reddish, and Christian Wood. Shake Milton would also help, but if and when he is officially traded, he can't be aggregated with other players in a trade. The only way he could be included is if a trade like this
Now that's just to match salaries. The Jazz would also want draft capital in return for Sexton. They'll likely want first-round picks for Sexton, but may want some light protections too. The Lakers want to improve their current standing and the Jazz have the means to help them by trading them Sexton, but it's not outlandish to suggest that it will come with a price.
What also works in the Jazz's favor is that they're not desperate to get rid of Sexton like they are with Jordan Clarkson or John Collins. Sure, no one would blame them if they traded Sexton, but they want value back for him.
The Jazz potentially trading Sexton to the Lakers has been mentioned quite a bit for some time now. The difference between before and now is that the Lakers have extra incentive to make a trade like this, and the Jazz can take so much advantage of it.