It has been frustrating that we have yet to see Georges Niang return to the court while wearing a Utah Jazz uniform. This injury he's been dealing with is clearly a problem that, hopefully, once he comes back, shouldn't be one going forward. Luckily, the Jazz haven't overreacted to it in his injury, as one problem they could run into is trading for someone on a longer-term contract than Niang's.
Part of why Utah wanted to bring Niang back is that his contract is very team-friendly, as he'll be a free agent this coming summer. That's why it's hard to see Utah doing this deal proposed by Golden State of Mind's Mark Delucchi between them and the Golden State Warriors.
Warriors get: Niang
Jazz get: Buddy Hield, 2030 Warriors second-round pick
Delucchi explained why the two teams would agree to a swap.
"The Jazz depth chart is already overly balanced toward frontcourt players. The Dubs, on the other hand, have a roster overly balanced towards guards who cannot create off the dribble. Using Hield and a future second-round pick for Niang would give the Warriors another $1 million in breathing room below the second apron hard cap and would also get them one of the most proven stretch-fours in the league," Delucchi wrote.
Well... sure? Hield isn't terrible by any means, but Utah wouldn't have much issue benching one of their frontcourt players to make room for Niang (it could be Svi Mykhailiuk or Kevin Love). But regardless, Utah made it a point of emphasis not to take on any long-term contracts this past offseason because they want to position themselves to have as much cap flexibility as possible.
Doing so gives them the chance at keeping Walker Kessler while signing someone impactful off the market. Hield's contract gets in the way of that. He's one of the sharpshooting greats, too, but in a league that values cap room now more than ever, he gets in the Jazz's way more than Niang does.
The Jazz acquired Niang for more than just his shooting
Niang has made his mark on the league because of his floor spacing abilities. However, after Utah traded him this offseason, it was revealed that they added him for his veteran influence on the locker room.
He has a reputation for being a good guy to have in the locker room, which would seemingly indicate that the plan is to keep him long-term after this season. As long as Utah plays its cards right this offseason, they should have the means to keep him around past this season.
It is a shame that it's taken as long as has to Niang play for the Jazz again, but there is seemingly no reason to cut ties with someone they went out of their way to re-acquire when they had the chance.