The Utah Jazz recently engaged in a three-team trade with the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Clippers, where they parted ways with John Collins to receive Kyle Anderson, Kevin Love, and a 2027 second-round pick.
According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, the Utah Jazz made the move because the team was winning more games than they should have when Collins was playing for them, ruining their tanking plans.
“He was too damn productive last season. I don’t even remember all the injuries they came up with to make sure he didn’t play. They limited him to 40 games last year,” MacMahon said on The Hoop Collective podcast.
“He played less than half the (82-game) schedule. He played in 70+% of their wins. They didn’t win a lot, but they won too often with John Collins in the lineup, and he was a reason. They had to get rid of him. They couldn’t have him on the roster,” he concluded.
Utah Jazz Rumors: ESPN analyst claims a Lauri Markkanen trade is coming soon
This summer, the Utah Jazz got rid of Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, and John Collins, and many wonder when Lauri Markkanen will follow suit. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, Utah is building towards trading the Finnish international away, despite having agreed to a massive extension last offseason.
“From what I know and talking to people around him, his expectation was that he knew the Jazz were rebuilding, but he was expecting them to start powering up. What it looks like they’re doing here is powering to be chasing AJ Dybantsa in the draft next year,” Windhorst said on NBA Today.
“Not a clean and simple trade, but I gotta wonder if the Jazz aren’t going to be taking some calls if not now, certainly, into this season. Their actions indicate they’re not building towards a team around Lauri Markkanen. They’re building around their young players and potentially their future draft picks going into next year,” he added.
