NBA Rumors: Nets Could Enter Donovan Mitchell Sweepstakes
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When the Utah Jazz split up their star duo of Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell by trading the former to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a blockbuster deal, it seemed the initial plan for Utah was to re-tool the roster to suit to Mitchell.
Fast forward a couple of weeks later, and the Jazz are rumored to be open to moving on from Mitchell. Before that was ever the case, the Philadelphia 76ers’ division rival, the Brooklyn Nets, looked into a possible deal to land Mitchell, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.
Considering the Nets have two superstars available in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, Brooklyn is expectedly looking for a deal to land another star and more for one of theirs. But when the Nets called Utah to inquire about Mitchell, the Jazz weren’t ready to discuss any potential deals.
“I know that Brooklyn at least inquired in the early stages of Durant’s trade request,” said Fischer on his podcast via HoopsHype. “[The Nets] were told then that Donovan was not. Obviously, things have changed now.”
It’s currently unclear if the Nets reached back out to the Jazz to see if a possible trade could get done, but if Brooklyn reached out to inquire before, it only makes sense if they do it once again as Durant remains interested in moving on.
Right now, the Jazz have a sky-high asking price for Mitchell. Several rumors have indicated the Jazz want somewhere around five to seven draft picks along with young players.
For a team like the Sixers, they simply cannot afford to strike a deal for Mitchell unless a package centered around players like Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey interests them. And even in that case, it’s unclear if the 76ers want to send Maxey or Harris out.
But when it comes to the Nets, they have a player who holds a lot of value in Kevin Durant. A deal between Brooklyn and Utah might not come close to getting done, but it wouldn’t be shocking if the two front offices re-engage in trade talks soon and potentially shake up both conferences.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
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