[joecheck88Participant]

according to espns marc stein via live sportscenter about 25 minutes ago, a trade is likely between minnesota and utah that would send twolves f/c al jefferson to utah for draft picks. this was made possible with utah getting a big trade exception in the sign and trade deal with chicago for carlos boozer. minny reportedly didnt want contracts back.

i know jazz fans have thoughts about this. what does everyone think?

[Malik-UniversalParticipant]

great trade for utah, this will solitify them back into the playoff picture even more, makes them have have more depth now by sending millsap to the bench.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

This move looks good on paper and sounds good, but I wonder how Jefferson will fit in Utah’s offensive system and defensive scheme? It’ll be interesting to see what Sloan can get out of him.

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

If Utah absorbs Jefferson’s deal, then I have to believe they will try to dump a salary to get under the tax line.

[PlatypusParticipant]

actually i can see Jefferson and Milsap playing together with Memo off the bench

[PlatypusParticipant]

Williams – Price
Miles – ???
Hayword / AK 47
Milsap – Memo
Jefferson – Kufos

OR

Williams – Price
Miles – ???
Hayword / AK 47
Jefferson – Milsap
Okur – Kufos

[ChrischiParticipant]

The main problem remains for the Jazz. They’re terribly undersized, like last season in the playoffs.

But I guess they’ll make the playoffs with that group.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

@BothTeamsPlayedHard

Utah has until the trade deadline to get under the tax line, correct?

Looking at Utah’s roster, Kirilenko looks like he could be that guy who’s contract is dumped.

[paint intruderParticipant]

I heard that they aren’t going to trade somebody to get under the tax line.
And I like the idea of symbol, mentioned above, bringing Memo from the bench with Millsap as their starting 4 and Jefferson as their 5.
That would be a great frontline which actually could be changed (Memo as the center and Jefferson as the Power Forward), if the match-up allows it.

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

“Utah has until the trade deadline to get under the tax line, correct?

Looking at Utah’s roster, Kirilenko looks like he could be that guy who’s contract is dumped.”

Teams have cap room with which to absorb contracts. Come mid-season, fewer will be in that position.

[PurpleMonkeyDishwasherParticipant]

Utah is receiving ther player… Wolves are receiving the ablility to keep making deal similar to what to the Beasley deal.
They can trade capspace for players and pick multiple times. Or in event a player decides he wants out of town the way Stephen Jackson did last year it put Wolves in perfect position to reap the benefits. The Wolves have no large contracts on the books once this trade goes down and all that is left is to figure out how turn their “acquired assets” into a team.

[llperez]

i just read on hoopshype that the wolves are leaders to land luke ridnour. If thats’ true, thats crazy. Flynn, sessions and rubio still coming over. They are just gonna get as many talented players as htey can and then let them fight for minutes like it was highschool tryouts or somehting

[PurpleMonkeyDishwasherParticipant]

I’m sure Ridnour signing is predicated on the Jefferson trade. The Wolves would like to send Sessions elsewhere and once the team is comfortable that Rubio is coming over Jonny Flynn will be moved. There are not many good pt guards available so it’s not a bad of a problem to have.

[SwatLakeCityParticipant]

Utah is willing to go over the tax line in order to compete. As an avid Jazz fan, I am very excited about this trade and yes Jefferson and Millsap could and will play together. At the start of the season, Memo will still be undergoing treatment and he will most likely not be able to play for a month or two and when he comes back he most likely will not be the Memo we are used to. So Jefferson’s ability to play defense and be a low post threat is a definite asset to this team. AK will likely start as we do better with him starting, and Hayward is only a rookie. Sloan never starts rookies; even Dwill did not start his rookie year. He was on the bench and did not start until his sophomore campaign. I expect AK to stay with Utah, and Utah will just wait like usual for his salary to expire which happens next offseason. They could try and involve him in the trade with Minny, but I don’t expect Minny to be willing to take on his contract, especially when they were not willing to take on Elton Brand’s contract when Minny was trying to finalize a trade with the Sixers in order to get the second pick of the draft and select Evan Turner, a guy which Minny highly coveted. Of course that never happened, I think a major part of it was because of Minny’s unwillingness to take on Brand’s contract. Minny will most likely be unwilling to do the same with AK’s, even though it is only for one more year. Expect this to be the lineup once this deal is finalized until of course Memo comes back from injury.
Dwill/Price
Miles/???(could be someone from the Minny trade or a signed player after Matthews offer is not matched, Miles could also be the backup and a possible 6th man player if Utah finds a suitable starter)
AK/Hayward
Millsap/???(another possible signing, Koufos could be used but I don’t like putting him here)
Jefferson/Fez

Once Okur comes back, Two lineups are possible:
Dwill/Price
Miles/???
AK/Hayward
Jefferson/Millsap
Okur/Fez
or (this lineup would be interesting)
Dwill/Price
Miles/???
AK/Hayward
Millsap/Okur
Jefferson/Fez

I expect Koufos to be used sparingly as he did not start in the playoffs when Memo went down. More and more fans are becoming displeased with him, I don’t even want to see him in a jazz uniform next season. FINALLY, UTAH IS MAKING SOME MUCH NEEDED OFFSEASON NOISE. YIPEE.

[PlatypusParticipant]

Okur would be good coming off the bench in a Channing Frye type role

[PurpleMonkeyDishwasherParticipant]

The Jazz always make the playoffs… good team, great organization. Jefferson should fit in well with them. I’m guessing that Jefferson would play better with AK47 than Milsap due to defensive abilities.

[SwatLakeCityParticipant]

That is what I am thinking symbol. Sloan would love the defense that Jefferson would bring, as he has always been an avid defensive minded coach. Memo plays more like a stretch 4, since he doesn’t play very much defense and he can shoot the 3 very well.

[PurpleMonkeyDishwasherParticipant]

It might be a little soon to be considering a roll for Okur yet. The achilles is a devastating injury for an athlete (See Elton Brand) to come back from.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

@dwilljazz8

Where are you getting that Al Jefferson is this great defender?

[ChrischiParticipant]

I like Al Jefferson + AK47, because AK would improve their interior D. But then again I’m asking myself why they gave Milsap that contract, if they insist to start him now that Boozer is gone.

[BothTeamsPlayedHardParticipant]

Honest truth, I don’t think Utah drops off if they simply replace Boozer with Jefferson. Even if they let Matthews go, I think they’d still be a lock for 50 wins.

My only dispute with dwilljazz8 is that if you believe Forbes then Utah generates between $115-120 million in revenue. If they have a $75 million payroll and pay $5 million in the tax, they are going to struggle to stay fiscally sound. Maybe Greg Miller doesn’t care. He isn’t his father, and obviously inherited his wealth and the team. Maybe his perspective is more radical than most. I don’t think so.

They don’t necessarily need to dump a salary for nothing. Kirilenko for someone like Luol Deng would get them under the tax while still not killing themselves in a talent drop. Maybe the idea that the Nets would have interest in Kirilenko is ignorant, but they have cap room and bodies. If the Hedo trade dies, that could be an option. Okur can probably be dealt for a cheaper and more defensive-minded big man. Once again with the Bulls (they seem to like the Jazz roster), why not Taj Gibson for Okur? Gibson can play off the bulk and offensive skill of Millsap and Jefferson while Okur fills the Brad Miller role in Chicago. A young team with cap room might be willing to give Koufos a shot (Washington? Sacramento? New Jersey?). The Jazz could certainly replace him with a minimum signing. Maybe they move Miles and just go with Gordon Hayward.

[ChrischiParticipant]

I don’t like Taj Gibson for Okur. Gibson would make the Jazz even shorter and I don’t think the Bulls would trade a prospect with a solid upside for a player who just came from a bad season with an achilles injury.

[Author]

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