Jazz Future Outlook ‘Sitting Pretty’ According to NBA Insider

The Utah Jazz have positioned themselves to improve their roster for the near or distant future. According to NBA insider Keith Smith of Spotrac.com, the Jazz are 'sitting pretty' regarding making upgrades to an already talented core moving forward.

Smith ranked Utah as the franchise with the third-most cap space heading into the 2024 season.

"Utah is sitting pretty," Smith wrote. "They've got all of their core players under contract, with a ton of potential cap space. Some of this spending power could be used to renegotiate and extend Lauri Markkanen's deal. That's en vogue at the moment, with Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis, as well as Jazzman Jordan Clarkson, having inked such deals in the last year. If Utah chooses to let things play out with Markkanen, they could be a major player in free agency, as they've got a ready-to-win roster."

Indeed, Jazz CEO Danny Ainge has turned the ship around since arriving in Salt Lake City less than two years ago. The Jazz have gone from a franchise with few maneuvering possibilities available to a team rich in assets with many options to get back in the championship conversation. But what will Utah do next?

Certainly, locking up All-Star forward Lauri Markkanen has to be high on the list. Shelling out a max contract shouldn't be an issue considering the cap space available. In fact, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Markkanen re-signing with Utah is something to keep an eye on.

"Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen is a renegotiation and extension candidate for next year to keep an eye on, from what I've heard," Scotto wrote.

All bets are off after the Jazz takes Markkanen off their bucket list. However, the most likely option is to pair him with an All-Star caliber talent via trade during the season.

Utah has enough assets and expiring contracts on hand to be competitive in the trade market to make an upgrade if an opportunity presents itself. If the stars don’t align on the trade front, then Utah could let some contracts expire and be aggressive in free agency. Whether that's bringing in new blood or possibly re-signing Talen-Horton Tucker if he can show Utah’s front office that his efficiency woes are a thing of the past.

The smart play would be letting the majority of the season run its course before making any rash decisions. Ainge will want to see what Utah has in players like Keyonte George, Taylor Hendricks, Ochai Agbaji, and Horton-Tucker before pushing their chips in the middle.

That said, Jazz fans can expect at least one aggressive move to take Utah to the next level before year's end.

Stay tuned

Follow Inside The Jazz on Facebook and Twitter.

Subscribe on YouTube for breaking Jazz news videos and live-stream podcasts!