Yahoo Sports Pounds Table for Jazz to Break Up Rudy Gobert/Donovan Mitchell Duo

As much as fans have enjoyed seeing the Utah Jazz become a constant force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference over the past four years, the bitter truth is that the team hasn't been able to leverage its regular-season success into postseason production.

Constantly coming up short in the playoffs leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth and eventually, the team in question has to examine the formula. After all, if you continue to do the things you've always done, you'll continue to get the things you've always got.

In that spirit, perhaps it really is time for the Jazz to bite the bullet and part with either three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert or All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell. At least, that's what Yahoo Sports' Ben Rohrback believes.

With rumors swirling around the Jazz, Gobert, Mitchell, and even head coach Quin Snyder, what this team needs is resolution. And that's what newly-minted CEO Danny Ainge could be seeking sooner rather than later.

No amount of moves around them has gotten them closer to a championship. It does not help that Gobert and Mitchell have passively lobbed shots at each other amid reports that they aggressively do not like each other. It is time to choose between them, and newly hired executive Danny Ainge is just the man to do it.

Whether Ainge has the will or intestinal fortitude to split up the Gobert/Mitchell ticket remains to be seen, but as Rohrback wagers, he is the man to do it, if it's going to happen. The question is, what value would either player have on the trade market?

Rohrback sketches it out.

Both Gobert and Mitchell should hold considerable value on the open market, but that value is lower than it might have been in offseasons past. Gobert is approaching 30 years old and has yet to prove he can be a difference-making defender against more malleable playoff offenses. Mitchell's defense turned Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson into a superstar, and he is more of a singular offensive force than a team playmaker.

If you were Ainge, and you're going to risk erring, do you roll the dice on retaining the offensive dynamo with an aversion to defense, or the impervious defender with a limited scoring upside in the modern NBA?

Let's be honest here. Mitchell's skillset fits more in line with the direction the NBA is headed than Gobert, the latter of whom is a figure cut straight from a bygone age of the game. Put Gobert in Utah circa 1996-97 and the Jazz probably find a way to win one of those Finals series vs. Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls.

When it comes to choosing sides, Ainge and Jazz GM Justin Zanik will likely back the All-Star guard for many different reasons, not the least of which is, despite his defensive dereliction of duty, his age. Mitchell is entering his age-26 season while Gobert will turn 30 this summer.

If the stars are aligning a certain way, it likely sketches the outline of Mitchell in the NBA firmament. But another factor that would impact such a momentous decision is value — specifically, what the Jazz could yield in exchange for each respective player.

There are probably more resources to be extracted from a Mitchell trade than Gobert deal, especially when it comes to using the capital to rebuild the Jazz's roster. In that sense, if Rohrback is right and Ainge opts to break up Utah's prolific duo, it's hard to speculate on which player ends up getting dealt.

All will be known in due time.

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.