The Utah Jazz are accepting trade offers for point guard Patrick Beverly, and the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat showed the most interest.
Beverly, a three-time All-NBA Defense selection, averaged 9.2 points, 4.6 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per game in 58 games with the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. He was a part of the blockbuster trade when the Timberwolves traded him along with four other players and four first-round draft picks to the Utah Jazz for Rudy Gobert.
The Jazz are shopping assets from the Gobert trade including Beverly and Jared Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, the Jazz have their starting backcourt on the trading bloc including Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell. The New York Knicks are actively discussing a trade for Donovan Mitchell that includes a multiple first-round draft picks.
Ainge Cleaning House
The Jazz have a new head coach with Will Hardy to replace Quin Snyder, who abruptly stepped down at the end of the season. Hardy is the youngest coach in the NBA and the Jazz gambled on a rookie head coach.
The Jazz secured the #5 seed in the postseason, but they were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round by the #4 Dallas Mavericks. Since the season ended, Ainge and general manager Justin Zanik have been busy wheeling and dealing. They fleeced the Timberwolves in the Gobert trade, and now trying to jack up the price for Mitchell to the Knicks.
“You’re over the tax, no draft picks, and our team loses in the first round,” said Jazz president Danny Ainge said on Saturday. “It wasn’t fun for us. We want it to be fun for our fans and our players, but we just haven’t had much flexibility to do anything over the last little while.”
The Jazz also sent Royce O’Neal to the Brooklyn Nets for a first-round pick.
It’s obvious that Jazz are in the middle of a reboot. If they complete a trade for Mitchell to the Knicks, they will have a massive haul of first-round picks. They could use them to stock the roster with young players, or parlay multiple picks into adding top-end players via trades.
Beverly: LA or Miami?
When the Jazz trade Beverly, at least he will not have to be on a team that could be one of the bottom feeders in the Western Conference and has a chance to play for a contender like the Lakers or Heat. He could return to LA, where he spent four seasons with the LA Clippers. The Lakers are looking for role players to surround LeBron James and Anthony Davis, which is why they’re interested in a trade for Beverly. They also need a veteran point guard after they unload Russell Westbrook.
Beverly would provide the Lakers a veteran point guard and defensive stopper who has playoff experience with the Clippers and Rockets.
The Lakers were hoping to dump Westbrook to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Kyrie Irving, but the Nets want a first-round draft pick and the Lakers to take Joe Harris and his salary off their books. The Lakers do not want to include a first-rounder in a Westbrook trade, but they do not have any other teams interested in Westbrook and his hefty max-contract. Teams would rather wait until the trade deadline to discuss a deal for Westbrook.
The Miami Heat need to upgrade their point guard because Kyle Lowry is not getting any younger and he’s been injury prone the last couple of seasons. There’s a chance the Heat make a pitch to bring Kevin Durant to South Beach, but they’d probably have to include Lowry, Duncan Robinson, and Tyler Herro plus draft picks. If that’s the case, then Beverly can take over at point guard. If they don’t acquire Durant in a trade, then Beverly is an insurance policy for the Heat if Lowry gets injured again.
The Jazz are +12000 odds to win the 2023 NBA championship, according to DraftKings. The Lakers are +1100 odds, and the Heat are +1200 odds to win the title.
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