3 Veteran Playmakers the Jazz Can Still Sign Late in the Offseason

It’s a concern many fans have surrounding the Utah Jazz entering next season: lack of playmaking. After sending out Mike Conley at February’s trade deadline, combined with the lack of adding an above-average playmaker to the roster, it projects to be one of the glaring weaknesses of this team going into next season.

Not all hope is lost, though. With a couple of months left until training camps start, there’s time for the Jazz to add a name or two to compete for a roster spot. Given that an NBA team can hold a maximum of 20 players in the offseason, non-guaranteed/training camp contracts are still on the table for Utah.

Therefore, the Jazz should target a veteran point guard to compete for a roster spot before the season. With a few valuable names at the position left over on the market, there are a few options for the front office to choose from.

Here are three candidates the Jazz could target to add going into the 2023-24 NBA season:

Ish Smith, last played for the Denver Nuggets

The NBA’s most notorious journeyman could make his next stop in Salt Lake City after winning a championship ring. Looking to enter his age-35 season, Ish has already been a member of 13 franchises, holding a league record. Why not keep hold of that record by signing with the Jazz?

In 43 games last year for Denver, he put up 2.5 points and 2.3 assists on only one turnover. I won’t act like these are mind-numbing stats by any means, but he generated at least 6.5 points in the nine minutes a night he played. There are much worse options present in the league.

It wouldn’t be expected of Smith to hold a consistent or major role in the rotation, but he could still provide some veteran leadership, IQ, and even step in as a distributor in a pinch for Utah.

Matthew Dellavedova, last played for the Sacramento Kings

Similarly to Ish Smith, Delly has that championship pedigree. He was a member of the historic 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers Finals team reviving themselves from a 3-1 deficit. While he’s since been in and out of rotations, and even the league at points, Dellavedova appeared in 32 games last season for Sacramento.

He’s been a consistently efficient distributor when given the opportunity over his past few seasons. In the 102 games he’s appeared in from 2020 to 2023, he’s maintained a 3.72 assist-to-turnover ratio. For reference, that ranks higher than what players such as James Harden, Kyrie Irving, LeBron James, and even Nikola Jokic put up this past season.

Now, let’s not get carried away and consider Outback Jesus in the same tier as these players, as this is a perfect representation of numbers not telling everything in basketball. However, it does show that he may still at least have a place on an NBA roster even eight years removed from his NBA Finals win, potentially with the Utah Jazz.

Raul Neto, last played for the Cleveland Cavaliers

Jazz fans will be familiar with this name, as Neto was a former roster staple for four seasons from 2015 to 2019. It was during those four years he had averages of 4.8 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. Without ever establishing that super significant role for the team in his tenure, he did start a surprising 53 games for Utah during his rookie season.

Like Dellavedova, though, he’s developed into a more consistent and efficient passer in recent memory. During his 500 minutes played last year, he put up an AST/TO% of 3.29. Combine this with shooting over 50% from the field as a 6-1 guard, as well as shooting over 91% from the line, I would be willing to take a second shot on Neto.

Even if eventually deemed a roster casualty or frequent reserve, just like the previous two entries on this list, he’s a needed vet to have on the squad. This team could use some veteran talent; the oldest player on the roster is Kelly Olynyk. Some older and more experienced guys could be an overall benefit to the younger pieces on hand.

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