It was announced earlier this week that the Utah Jazz had signed Patty Mills to a veteran's minimum contract. However, The Athletic's Tony Jones revealed that the signing won't be official for a few weeks for a reason.
A little on the Patty Mills signing. I wouldn’t expect it to be official for a few weeks. Think the Jazz want to continue to keep financial options open. The vision here is for Patty to mentor on and off the floor. The Jazz want to develop youth this season
— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) August 15, 2024
Jones later confirmed what the Jazz still have in their arsenal.
Bingo https://t.co/fgHVl7mkDz
— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) August 15, 2024
Utilizing this exception could help the Jazz get another asset. While teams want to get better, they also want to save money while doing it. The Jazz helping them to do so could potentially be a win-win for both sides.
At the same time, it depends on who they would get and for how long. Would the Jazz think it's worth absorbing a contract that could somewhat hurt their long-term flexibility? Well, what else would they be getting back?
There are several players the Jazz could acquire not just to get another asset, but could also be worth giving a flyer because, at this point, they don't have much else to lose.