Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
Did Knicks' RJ Barrett Deal Make Utah Salty in Donovan Mitchell Trade Talks?
Some new verses on RJ Barrett's New York Knicks career reportedly caused the Utah Jazz to search elsewhere when it came to dealing away franchise face Donovan Mitchell.
On an "emergency" podcast made in the wake of the Jazz's shipping of Mitchell to Cleveland, ESPN's Brian Windhorst claimed that "an incredible amount of animus" formed when the Knicks bestowed Barrett an extension worth up to $120 million. That apparently rubbed Utah the wrong way, as Barrett, set to enter the final year of his original rookie contract, was reportedly involved in a potential deal that would've sent Mitchell (further) east.
"I don't know who said no. I don't know if it was the Knicks who said no, or the Jazz who said no," Windhorst said. "I definitely felt (the animus) in talking to people over the last 24 hours ... I felt that there was some scar tissue there, I was saying 'It is only August 31st, September 1st. That doesn't mean they're not going to do a deal.'"
Simply put, it appears that after the Knicks opted to try and solve their own business, the Jazz opted to do the same: theirs involved finding a new party for Mitchell, namely that of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The deal included three unprotected first-round choices, two picks swaps, and a trio of veterans headlined by Colin Sexton.
In either case, the Knicks have made their bed with Barrett, as well as their other young veterans like Quentin Grimes. Time will tell how the gambit plays out, but the team seems satisfied with its current trajectory, one that should at least get them back into the Play-In Tournament discussion.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
