The Utah Jazz are likely to be shopping for players and bringing in fresh energy, making that one among some of the key priorities of the team.

A set of attractive assets sit on the Jazz's hands, and they can pull off a key move with those pieces. Derrick Favors ($12 million), Joe Johnson ($10.5 million), Rodney Hood ($2.3 million), and Raul Neto ($1.4 million), for one, all have expiring contracts, and each can provide a lift for various contending playoff teams.

Being a 17-year veteran, Johnson knows that getting traded is inevitable.  Here's what he told Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune:

“This is what we signed up for at the end of the day… Almost everyone in the NBA is tradeable. It’s part of the game, part of the business. We have to be professional. We can’t cry about it. We have to go out and we have to play.”

Favors, meanwhile, told Jones that he and the rest of the Jazz are trying not to think about the trade rumors:

“We can’t pay attention to it… We have to let them do all of the talking, the reporters, the fans, the people on twitter. We can’t pay attention to it. We see it. Everyone has their trade ideas. But for me, I try not to pay attention. If [a trade happens] it happens. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I’m going to play hard regardless.”

The Jazz are right along the lines of where everyone thought they would be when their former franchise player, Gordon Hayward, bolted for the Boston Celtics this past summer. They are now 18-26 and ranked 10th in the Western Conference standings.

Chemistry, shortage in talent, lack of team identity, and the injury of their key big man, Rudy Gobert only playing 18 games this season — are all also playing a part in the Jazz's struggles.

With averages of 19.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.5 steals per game, rookie Donovan Mitchell has been the team's lone bright spot. One can only imagine how ugly things could've been for the Jazz without the sensational youngster.