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As NBA free agency opened up last week, there was a flurry of moves across the league. That came on the heels of a wild NBA Draft, which was preempted by the stunning Kevin Durant trade to the Houston Rockets. But on Monday, the Utah Jazz got in on the action by making a stunning trade themselves.
The Jazz sent forward John Collins to the Los Angeles Clippers in a three-team deal with the Miami Heat. Here are the full details of the trade:
- The Clippers receive F John Collins
- The Heat acquire SG Norman Powell
- The Jazz receive F Kevin Love, F Kyle Anderson, Clippers' 2027 2nd round pick
While on its face, the Jazz appear to have gotten the short end of the stick based on talent. After all, Powell is coming off the best year of his career, and Collins posted 19 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season.
Meanwhile, the 36-year-old Love is obviously a shell of himself, and Anderson has averaged double-digit scoring once in his 11-year career. But if you look deeper, you will learn exactly how much this trade benefited the Jazz.
So, let's grade the Jazz trade of John Collins.
Grading the Utah Jazz Trade of John Collins
Collins utilized his skill set to advance his game offensively last year, tying with Lauri Markkanen for the team lead in scoring. The forward out of Wake Forest will turn 28 this fall, so he is basically in his prime. You can argue that those are the detractors from this trade.
But here's the thing.
Collins is entering the final year of his contract, worth $26.5 million. It is widely believed that he was not going to sign an extension with the Jazz. With Utah still quite a ways from contending in the loaded Western Conference, it made sense to turn Collins into a future asset.
A Clippers second-round pick in 2027 will probably land between selections 45 and 55. So, while that may not garner a future star, it is an asset nonetheless. But the bigger piece in all of this is the financial ramifications.
The Jazz “can create a massive $26.6 million trade exception for John Collins if they absorb Kyle Anderson & Kevin Love with the mid-level exception,” wrote NBA Draft Cap Analyst Yossi Gozlan. The non-tax mid-level exemption holds a tag of just over three-quarters of a million dollars for each. With Collins shipped out to Los Angeles, only Markkanen is the sole veteran holdover from previous seasons.
That's how young this Utah team is (outside of Love and Anderson). This trade allows incredible freedom for Utah to become a cap space team, with room to grow.
Considering all of the factors, Utah did rather well.
Grade: B+
