Don't be surprised if Jazz make crucial decision with John Collins after ankle sprain

The Utah Jazz suffered another injury a few days back, as they announced John Collins will be out for at least two weeks with an ankle sprain.

Collins has had an excellent second season with the Jazz after an all-around disastrous performance the year prior. His return to form has actually been good news for the Jazz, as it hasn't interfered much with their tanking efforts. Plus, they almost successfully traded him at the deadline because of his resurgence.

It is a shame that he got hurt, but knowing where the Jazz are, it is convenient that one of their best players will be out with not much time left this season. With the season winding down, the Jazz may not want to take the chances that his play will lead to more wins, which could hurt their lottery odds.

That's why it wouldn't be surprising decide from here on out that Collins' season is over. His absence would likely prevent their odds of getting the No. 1 pick from worsening. Plus, it opens the door for some of their young bigs like Kyle Filipowski and Micah Potter to get more time.

The Jazz's phrasing was not that he would return in two weeks but would be re-evaluated in two weeks. By the time that date comes, which is technically March 28, there will be less than a month left in the season. It may not be worth it to re-integrate him which such little time left.

The Jazz might get punished for this, and they probably won't care

The NBA has punished the Jazz for keeping players out, as they did when Lauri Markkanen missed a couple of games. In that case, the Jazz were fined specifically because of Markkanen's status as an All-Star since he made the team two years ago.

Collins has never made an All-Star team, so this wouldn't apply to him, but the NBA is highly aware of when teams are tanking and has taken every measure to limit it. If they punish Utah again for keeping Collins out, it might be as a little as a warning, but even if they go as far as fining the Jazz much more than they did for Markkanen, Utah's not going to care much.

It's been pointed out ad nauseam how this class features a potential franchise-changer in Cooper Flagg. The Jazz have taken every measure to ensure they get the best odds to snare him, even if it's not guaranteed they'll get him. Plus, even if they don't wind up with him, there are still quite a few exciting prospects to look into.

Utah is simply investing in their future. If a glorious era a few years down the line comes at the cost of a few hundred thousand dollars, that's a sacrifice they would be willing to make.

And already have, honestly.