Danny Ainge has ties to the Boston Celtics. In fact, he orchestrated their 17th title and had plenty to do with their 18th, but would he really help the Celtics with their problems? This proposed trade would help Boston plenty with their priorities, but the Utah Jazz might not be so keen to take one of their players off their payroll, especially at the cost of a first-round pick.
PhillyVoice's Adam Aaronson proposed a trade between the Jazz and Celtics in which the following would happen.
Jazz receive: Sam Hauser, No. 32 pick
Celtics receive: No. 21 pick
Aaronson explained why Boston would trade one of the NBA's best sharpshooters to Utah.
"Boston needs to trade Hauser this summer as part of their cost-cutting measures despite his elite three-point shooting and valuable contract," Aaronson wrote.
Hauser will start a four-year, $45 million contract, which is pretty good value because Hauser brings the one skill that is valued more than anything else, but that contract will be on the books for a while. So why would the Jazz do it?
"The Jazz seem to be looking to improve after posting the worst record in the NBA last season, and dropping 11 spots in this range to add a shooter of Hauser's caliber on such a team-friendly deal is an obvious win."
The rationale is not terrible on Utah's end. Sam Hauser is an NBA champion and he has been pretty impressive since coming into the league as an undrafted free agent. He's not an elite player, but he is an underrated (not shutdown) defender who can space the floor.
Plus, acquiring him would back up Austin Ainge's notion that the Jazz will not tank next season. For the 21st overall pick, Hauser is a solid value pickup. There's only one problem.
The real reason why Utah wouldn't do this trade specifically
Hauser is a believable pickup for the Jazz if they want to take baby steps towards relevance again. However, with the No. 21 pick, it's much more likely that they will use it to trade up rather than use it for a veteran.
Because the Jazz are a young team, their priority should be to acquire as many young players from a talented draft class as possible. It's much more believable that they will try to dangle that pick and some of their other veterans to move up before they try to sell it off for a veteran like Hauser.
If they made a trade like that for Hauser, it would be more of a last resort than anything else. It would be because they couldn't find a better trade out there. Not that this is a bad trade per se, but Utah would definitely consider other trades first before doing this.
The Jazz may very well acquire Hauser anyway, but likely not at the cost of a first-round pick in a year like this. If they did, they would be doing the Celtics two favors: cutting their payroll (which is what Boston wants) and giving them a first-round pick (a potential rotation player on an inexpensive rookie contract).
Don't be surprised if the Jazz become trade partners with the Celtics this offseason, but be very surprised if this specific deal happens.