Media Outlet Suggests an Eye-Opening Jazz & Spurs Exchange

Despite the Utah Jazz being two months away from the trade deadline, rumors of a roster reshuffle continue to flow in. The latest comes from Sporting News, which suggests the San Antonio Spurs should attempt to acquire veteran forward John Collins.

"The addition of Collins to the Spurs would give the team another all-around offensive force to pair in the frontcourt with Wembanyama, giving the 2024 NBA Rookie of the Year and improved passer a fantastic target in the dunker’s spot. Collins’ high-flying skill set would also provide their future Hall-of-Fame point guard Chris Paul with a perfect lob threat, bringing an entirely new dynamic to their offense. Collins’ career 35.9% three-point percentage also gives the Spurs more room to operate as a floor-spacer. In return for Collins, Utah could seek a star forward prospect like Keldon Johnson along with first-round draft compensation." -- Dean Simon The Sporting News

Before the season started, an exchange involving Collins would never have been considered. Collins was coming off a respectable season. He averaged 15.1 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, but that still didn’t justify the 53 million dollars of guaranteed money owed over the next two years.

Fast-forward to today and a trade is within the realm of possibility. Collins's stat line has seen spikes this year in points, rebounds, assists, and FG%. His contract also gets closer to expiring by the day, which makes him more tradable as we get deeper into the regular season.

However, the Jazz are in a spot where they don’t have to do anything right now. In a year in which lottery odds are taking precedence, the Jazz have only won four games in 21 attempts. Even with a rostered Collins, the Jazz are trending to secure a top-five pick in the upcoming draft. Unless the Jazz start stacking some wins soon, they can be patient with Collins.

Let’s also keep in mind that even though it’s plausible that the Jazz can get out from under Collins’ contract this year, it’s still a stretch that first-round draft compensation could be had in return. The notion that Utah could get Keldon Johnson and a first-rounder for Collins isn’t happening in this lifetime.

If a trade were to happen, it would be similar to the one that brought Collins to Salt Lake City from the Atlanta Hawks in the summer of 2023. The Jazz would trade Collins for some expiring contracts, setting themselves up to make a big move this offseason.

Another scenario would be for Utah to keep Collins. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the 2025-26 season, and if the price is right, the Jazz could secure Collins during his prime years.

Either way, the Jazz have some options thanks to the improved play of their starting forward. The trade deadline is February 6 and Jazz fans can expect a steady flow of rumors leading up to that day.

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