Why Josh Green Could Be the Jazz’s Perfect Trade Candidate to Shop

The Utah Jazz made a late-offseason deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves last month to send out former No. 10 pick Cody Williams and veteran wing John Konchar to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Josh Green.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are trading Josh Green and cash to the Utah Jazz for Cody Williams and John Konchar, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/9mZTm4amkH
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 29, 2026

It was a bit of a surprising move for Utah to make–– at least at this point in the offseason–– to pivot off of two of their guys to go out and acquire Green.

However, the trade does effectively give the Jazz a nice defender on the wing with what Green brings to the table, and opens up a roster spot for the meantime heading into next season.

At the same time, there's also a hidden benefit that Green's acquisition has for Utah. And the rewards from that might not be seen until we're midway through the course of the 2026-27 season: it's the ability that Green and his expiring contract have to be a trade chip for the Jazz.

How the Josh Green Trade Can Help More Than What Meets the Eye

On the floor, Green should be able to provide an impact as a serviceable defender and shooter that the Jazz can lean on in the wing. He played in 58 games for the Hornets last season to log 4.3 points and 1.8 rebounds while shooting 42.0% from the field, and played a little over 15 minutes a night.

So the Jazz going out to acquire Green goes beyond his ability to simply be a trade chip. Yet, Green's sizeable contract of $14.6 million does give Utah a tradeable deal on the books that they didn't have before, which could come in handy once the regular season reaches closer to February.

Nov 30, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Josh Green (10) reacts after a call during the second quarter against the Atlanta Hawks at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kinser-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Let's say the Jazz didn't have plans to re-sign Green for another season and wanted to go out on the trade market to acquire a more reliable defender, or potentially a big man. Green's contract gives them flexibility to do either, and have the ample salaries onboard to make a trade feasible by involving Green.

Before the move to acquire Green, the Jazz's tradeable salaries onboard were very minimal. Their top two salaries were due to Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson at over a $45 million AAV, and only two others––Darryn Peterson and Jusuf Nurkic––had an AAV of over $10 million.

Now with Green onboard holding a hefty salary, they could flip him in a deal, potentially attached to other assets, acquiring a returning salary of over $20 million, and possibly inject their rotation with a new sense of life at the trade deadline that might not be as heavily on the radar right now.

So of course, while pivoting off of a homegrown lottery talent like Williams hurts, the move to get Green in the building feels like one small step that could lead into something bigger once the regular season gets underway.

As to what that bigger domino to fall could be remains to be seen. However, at a bare minimum, the Jazz have a bit more flexibility to make deals moving forward than they had before making their latest trade with the Timberwolves.

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