The Utah Jazz have impacted the current NBA standings by proxy. Look at the Cavaliers this season. They are a machine, and that would not have been possible had it not been for the Donovan Mitchell trade two and a half years ago.
It's very possible that since they've been sellers for since 2022, the Jazz may play a part in the next NBA Champion for the next several years. Or at the very least, drastically impact how the playoffs shake out. Look at how the Timberwolves fared in the playoffs last year. They don't get there without the Jazz's help.
And it's not too unreasonable to suggest that they could have made things even more interesting had they pulled the trigger on a trade last year. Jake Fischer reported on the Stein Line that the Warriors nearly had a deal done until the Raptors swooped in at the last second.
"It is important to note... that Olynyk was nearly traded to Golden State ahead of last February's deadline, sources said, before the Utah Jazz swung a deal to send the Canadian to Toronto instead," Fischer wrote.
It was reported before the Jazz traded Olynyk that the Warriors were interested, so this news isn't entirely surprising, though the added wrinkle that the deal appeared to be on the one-yard line before Olynyk was abruptly and oddly traded to a lottery team like the Raptors is noteworthy.
Olynyk could have made the Warriors more dangerous
Olynyk is not nor has he ever been a star, but he is a player that, in the right situation, could be lethal for a playoff team. He's a stretch big who is quite good at using his height to exploit matchups. He had a proven track record of helping playoff teams reach their full potential, like the 2017 Celtics and 2020 Heat.
It may sound ludicrous to suggest that Olynyk could have changed their fate, but the Warriors have shown that getting the right roles can make al the difference for them. It's fair to ask where they would have gone had they never added the likes of Andre Iguodala, Shaun Livingston, and Otto Porter Jr., among others, throughout their reign.
Olynyk is not the same player as them, but he would have given them matchup advantages like those players mentioned above did when Golden State was winning. Throughout the Stephen Curry era, he's never had a big man who could stretch the floor like Olynyk, and there's no telling how much that dynamic could have changed everything for them last year or this year, for that matter.
Alas, the Raptors topped their offer (likely because they offered a guaranteed first-round pick that the Warriors did not), though Olynyk is reportedly back on the market (which Fischer reported), so maybe it's not too late.
Regardless, doing so may have been the difference between missing the playoffs altogether (which happened to the Warriors) and going on another lengthy run. Would this have affected the Jazz much? Of course not, but it is interesting to see that this is the kind of power that they can wield as sellers.
The Jazz have more players around Olynyk's level (and better) that they will try to sell before the trade deadline passes. They can use scenarios like these to convince trade partners to pay what they can for who they want from Utah's roster. The only reason the Warriors didn't get Olynyk was because Toronto outbid them, which likely played a part in why they missed out on the playoffs last year.
Teams aspiring for a title need players that make them harder to beat. The Jazz have those exact players even if they're not stars. Their leverage in trade negotiations could be that they'll tell partners that if they don't acquire this player, not only could they end up like the Warriors last year, but they'll also wonder what could have been.