Report: Jarred Vanderbilt Already Drawing Interest on NBA Trade Market
Jarred Vanderbilt might not be a household name to the casual fan, but the general managers around the NBA know who he is and what he brings to the table.
According to Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer, Vanderbilt is high in demand around the NBA.
“Each player who arrived in Utah in exchange for Gobert is also considered available for trade. Vanderbilt has already drawn significant interest from rival teams.”
Vanderbilt is the type of player that the Jazz have been missing in recent years. A high-energy player that can keep a crowd engaged with hustle and grit. On the defensive side, he can guard wings on the perimeter while making life difficult for the bigs on the post. Versatility is his strength.
At 6-foot-9, he’s got a 7-foot-1 wingspan paired with an 8-foot 10 standing reach. He’s got a skill set that’s hard to duplicate, and I would love to see what he can do as the starting center for the Jazz. The best part is he’s under team control for two more years at a bargain of a deal at $4.5 million per year.
Vanderbilt will be an unrestricted free agent in 2024. The Jazz would be wise to follow the trend of locking up key players the year before they hit the market. Jazz executive Danny Ainge now has the salary-cap flexibility to do that.
There’s been buzz on social media that Vanderbilt could fetch the Jazz a first-round pick if they made him available. In this case, one in the hand is worth two in the bush, and Ainge should resist the temptation of moving Verlander for an unknown.
Follow Patrick on Twitter @pbyrnesNBA.
