Warriors Had Eyes on Jaren Jackson Jr. Before Jazz Deal

It looks like the Utah Jazz had at least one team in competition to acquire Jaren Jackson Jr. before ultimately traded from the Memphis Grizzlies–– the Golden State Warriors seemingly had some budding interest as well.

According to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, the Warriors were in discussions with the Grizzlies surrounding a deal for Jackson Jr. before shifting their focus to talks regarding Giannis Antetokounmpo with the Milwaukee Bucks.

"The Golden State Warriors held extensive talks with the Memphis Grizzlies on a deal for Jaren Jackson Jr. a few weeks ago with a similar package that was ultimately offered by the Utah Jazz...The Warriors tabled those conversations with the Grizzlies when Giannis Antetokounmpo came to market. With Jackson off the board to the Jazz, the Warriors made a lower risk move with the Atlanta Hawks for Kristaps Porzingis."

In due time, those efforts for Antetokounmpo would fall short for both the Warriors and the remainder of the league.

By the time the talks were over with the Bucks, though, the Jazz had already made their move on the market; swooping in to secure Jackson Jr. from the Grizzlies with their pick-heavy package along with a couple of young players and veterans, leaving Utah as the ones walking away winning the sweepstakes.

Jazz's Aggressiveness for Jaren Jackson Jr. Pays Off

From the Jazz's perspective, it's a bit of a confidence booster knowing that with other interest around the market, they might've made their home-run swing at the perfect time.

Heading into the trade deadline, there was more of an expectation that the Jazz would instead wait until this offseason to strike on a buy-now move rather than in-season for hopes of keeping a high pick in this year's drat. Utah's been patient at the past three trade deadlines, and this year was shaping up to be similar.

But the Jazz decided to have a different mindset this time around, deciding to make a major push now rather than later, and giving up some notable assets to do so: Taylor Hendricks, Walter Clayton, and three first-round picks are a decent price to pay, but one that's certainly worth investing in for an All-Defensive talent like Jackson Jr.–– especially as the 30th-ranked defense in the NBA.

The aforementioned Warriors seemed to share the same sentiment, having put a similar offer on the table for the Grizzlies that the Jazz would offer, but then pulled out at the wrong time to push the chips in for Giannis, that gave Utah's front office the perfect chance to be opportunistic with Memphis.

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Had the Jazz decided to wait until this offseason to make that swing for Jackson Jr., there's no guarantee he would've been left out there. The Warriors are just one rumored name that was in the hunt, but there's a chance Golden State and Utah might've not been the lone suitors in the race with Memphis.

Instead, the Jazz opted now was the right time, giving them an appealing frontcourt core of Jackson Jr. along with Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler for the future, and allowing for a real route towards playoff contention as soon as next season.

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