The NBA was unprepared for the Donovan Mitchell trade between the Jazz and Cavaliers. Although there were rumors that the Cavaliers were interested, insiders told NBC Sports (and other outlets) that the Knicks were still the obvious front-runners.
After the unexpected trade, there was a lot of discussion and finger-pointing about how Mitchell ended up in wine and gold. One hypothesis holds that the Jazz front office rejected a better offer from the Cavaliers out of spite after growing impatient with the Knicks executives over issues like their failure to attend their playoff game.
According to ESPN's Zach Lowe on the Lowe Post Podcast with Ian Begley, Utah management is shooting that one down (hat tip to Real GM).
'Well, the Jazz were furious Donovan Mitchell maybe wasn't all-in forever with Utah, and as punishment, we'll send him to a place he doesn't want to do,' according to some reports; I'm sorry, I can't remember who said,' said Zach Lowe on his show.
"Emotions can play into this. The Utah side has told me, "No, look, we're grown, folks. Yes, we were furious, especially after the Mavs game incident, but we won't base our selections on events that occurred four months ago or anything of the sort. We struck the best bargain we could.
Never say never, but knowledgeable and savvy executives strive to keep feelings out of most choices. An NBA senior executive occasionally has to put team interests ahead of personal feelings because the league can be a cold, hard business. Ainge thinks he accomplished that here.
Would you rather have three unprotected picks from a Cavaliers team now positioned with a strong young core that could be a force for five years or longer or two from an unprotected Knicks franchise that has had turbulent recent decades? It's debatable whether Ainge and the Jazz made the right decision. The question of which team between the Knicks and Cavaliers is more likely to finish the season with a lower record than the Jazz in four or six years applies similarly to pick swaps.
Login To Leave a Comment