Bojan Bogdanovic Linked in New Jazz Trade Rumor
The Utah Jazz are reportedly still engaged in trade talks with the Los Angeles Lakers to help consolidate their roster, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic.
"The Jazz are currently at 17 players, which means the roster will have to be trimmed by at least two by some point before the beginning of the regular season. And the front office isn’t done taking trade calls.
"League sources indicate a market for Bogdanovic at the very least, of which there is significant interest for the 6-foot-8 shooting forward. But, the Jazz at this point don’t appear to be particularly close to a trade that could land them even more assets and consolidate the roster, although there are ongoing talks with the Los Angeles Lakers."
The Jazz are now against the clock with the season opener against the Denver Nuggets on October 19. The Jazz will have to trim it to 15 players before then because that's the NBA-mandated limit during the regular season.
Trading Bojan Bogdanovic and another vet for Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook makes sense, but it was reported last week by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst that due to the low offers, the Lakers were not trading the former MVP.
Taking a quick glance at the roster, the Jazz also could buy out Rudy Gay’s contract. With the Jazz in the midst of a rebuild, there’s really not a place for the well-traveled veteran. Gay is owed $6.25 million for the 2022-23 season.
Also, point guard Mike Conley would be a prime candidate to get moved but will be tough to trade due to a contract that isn’t team friendly. His contract runs through 2024, and it might make more sense for a contender to take on Conley as circumstances develop during the season.
Malik Beasley and Jordan Clarkson could also be shopped as their contracts are reasonable and should be able to garner an asset back. Clarkson is under team control through 2024 and is owed roughly $13.5 million per year, while Beasley is owed $15.4 million this year with an attractive team option of $16.5 million in 2024.
Expect at least one more roster reshuffle before the season gets underway in one month.
Follow Patrick on Twitter @pbyrnesNBA.
