Image by Doug Wallick via FlickrThe Jazz and Wolves made a simple trade on Tuesday, exchanging
Al Jefferson for two future first round picks, a former first round pick in Kosta Koufos and a traded player exception.
But the trade gets more interesting when we play retroactive GM and realize the Jazz essentially swapped
Carlos Boozer (along with what was sent to Minnesota) for Jefferson. The contract Jefferson is under is more affordable annually and is also shorter in length, plus he is several years younger.
For the Wolves, they have now essentially sent
Kevin Garnett to the Celtics for Jonny Flynn (their own pick back from the
Wally Szczerbiak trade), Wayne Ellington, Koufos, Martell Webster and two more additional picks. It is a whole collection of assets that conceivably could have instead been Stephen Curry and
DeJuan Blair, but it is certainly a forewarning to the Hornets as they continue to internally debate whether or not to trade Chris Paul.
Conversely, a preemptive strike such as what Minnesota accomplished with Garnett and Utah did not do with Boozer almost always elicits a better return.
The Cavaliers and Heat each received as much for
LeBron James and
Chris Bosh, respectively, as the Wolves did for Jefferson. At the very least, it is a feather of some degree in David Kahn's hat, even if it is not an analogous comparison.
Kahn might have drafted two point guards in Flynn and
Ricky Rubio, plus signed a third in Ramon Sessions during this first couple of months on the job, but he at least did not draft a second
power forward when the old regime picked up Kevin Love. The trade for Love was a good one, as it shifted around some assets and he was the better prospect for Minnesota than O.J. Mayo, but it did create this roster imbalance. Not to discredit Love, but drafting Brook Lopez, who did appear to be their preferred pick at various times would have made life infinitely less complicated.
Minnesota knew they had to trade either Jefferson or Love and they absolutely made the correct decision. Right off the top, Love is younger and cheaper than Jefferson, plus I believe he is ultimately the superior player.
There was the pipe dream of trading Jefferson for someone like Danny Granger, but that was always unrealistic. I thought they could eventually do well by dealing him for someone a little less established, but his injury concerns, somewhat burdensome contract and the limited way he impacts a game.
Defensively and as a passer, Jefferson doesn't offer his team very much. He is a true power forward, but he is capable of being a big body of resistance in the paint against bigger offensive players, even if the resistance is relatively useless.
For the Jazz, acquiring Jefferson one week after losing Boozer at least allows them to sustain their 09-10 level of play for the remainder of
Deron Williams' contract. As much as this franchise will ever appease a player, remaining committed to doing everything within their power to keep Williams content with the situation is an imperative given how valuable he is to their continued success. The Jazz are in a better situation than the Hornets are with Chris Paul, but they were another backtrack move or two away having Williams become more vocal with displeasure.
This move does once again murk up
Paul Millsap's role with the team. Do the Jazz go small and start both Millsap and Jefferson, or do they remain more conventional?
Furthermore, the logic of passing on Ed Davis and Patrick Patterson in favor of Gordon Hayward becomes more clear in light of the Jefferson acquisition. I had both of those power forwards rated higher than Hayward, plus the need for a replacement for Boozer seemed like an inevitability.
Grade for Jazz: B-
Ultimately, this trade was one both teams had to make because the alternatives were unattractive, even if this doesn't feel great. The Jazz could ill-afford to begin the season without bringing in a replacement for Boozer's production and Jefferson's trade value wasn't going to increase when the season began and Kahn would be forced into increasing his desperation.
Grade for Wolves: B+
http://jazz.realgm.com/articles/43/20100714/grading_the_deal_jazz_replace_boozer_with_jefferson/
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