Ladies and gentlemen, the Utah Jazz have made a trade! This time, it involves players rather than draft picks! ESPN's Shams Charania and Bobby Marks reported that the Jazz have traded Drew Eubanks and Patty Mills to the LA Clippers for PJ Tucker, Mo Bamba, and a second-round pick.
The Los Angeles Clippers are trading PJ Tucker, Mo Bamba, a future second-round pick and cash to the Utah Jazz for Drew Eubanks and Patty Mills, sources tell me and @BobbyMarks42. pic.twitter.com/YOy5kIUd6z
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 1, 2025
The Clippers have been one of the more pleasant surprises in the NBA. After losing Paul George to Philadelphia and Kawhi Leonard getting hurt again, some feared they would become a tanking threat to the Jazz, but that's been far from the case.
The Clippers are 28-20, thanks largely to the efforts of James Harden and Norm Powell. Now, Kawhi is back and healthy. That means things could get much better for them from here. The Clippers clearly wanted reinforcements for their upcoming playoff run, and Eubanks gives them a backup center behind Ivica Zubac.
There's no telling if Mills is part of the equation in LA, but whether he is or isn't, this deal makes sense for both sides. While the Clipeprs strengthen their rotation, the Jazz get an asset for their troubles, though not exactly a valuable one.
Will the Jazz keep either Tucker or Bamba?
The Jazz didn't exactly acquire any high-value players, but it's not like that's what they should have expected for the likes of Eubanks or Mills.
Tucker will likely go the same route as Otto Porter Jr., where they'll promptly waive him shortly. However, no one knows if Tucker will retire, much like Porter did once the Jazz waived him. Tucker had a strained relationship with the Clippers because they didn't play him, but they didn't because he's pushing 40.
If the Clippers wouldn't play Tucker, the Jazz won't either.
PJ Tucker is likely to become a buyout candidate upon being traded to the Utah Jazz.
— Yossi Gozlan (@YossiGozlan) February 1, 2025
He would be allowed to sign with any team since his pre-waiver salary ($11.5 million) is less than the $12.8 million mid-level exception.
However, anyone could have guessed that with Tucker. Bamba is a different story. By acquiring Bamba, the Jazz may also look into his exact value before deciding what they do with him. He's a downgrade from Eubanks, hence the trade, but he's not quite bad enough that it's a given that the Jazz will waive him.
That doesn't mean that they will keep him, but more that the Jazz may try to see if there are contenders that will try to acquire him before potentially getting waived. Interested parties may wait past the deadline, but Utah can afford to wait because they don't have much to lose.
It wasn't the biggest deal the Jazz could make, and Eubanks likely won't be the best player the Jazz trade between now and February 6, but hey, at least we got some fireworks!