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SALT LAKE CITY — There's still a chance Russell Westbrook suits up for the Utah Jazz, after all.
In a Zoom meeting with reporters, Jazz general manager Justin Zanik said the organization is "open to all sorts of possibilities" when it comes to the former MVP guard; and those include Westbrook actually making his way to Salt Lake City after the Jazz acquired him in a three-team deal ahead of the trade deadline.
"He has been very positive on being here in Utah, and we've been very open to the possibilities of him," Zanik said. "It's just ongoing discussions. I think it's important to know that he probably needs some time. This is the first time in his career he has been in a position like this. We wanted to be very transparent of where we are as an organization, and he's been very open to different roles in that, so we're just kind of giving him some time and continuing to talk."
The Jazz probably didn't need to say anything to Westbrook, though, for him to know where they were as a team. This week's actions were transparent enough.
Utah moved three rotations pieces (Mike Conley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley), as well as Nickeil Alexander-Walker for the prize of a 2027 first-round pick from the Los Angeles Lakers.
So it's pretty clear the Jazz don't think they are ready to contend this season; heck, they seem to be set on not making the playoffs. It makes sense for both Westbrook and the Jazz for a buyout to be reached. That said, Zanik said nothing has been ruled out yet.
"There haven't been any decisions made; there haven't been any possibilities eliminated," he said.
While Westbrook's name brings some added attention to the deal, he wasn't the reason Utah made the move. The main attraction for new Utah was the chance at a sought-after first-round pick. Sure, there were other players involved — Utah also got Damian Jones and Juan Toscano-Anderson in the deal — but the main purpose of moving on from veterans was to get their hands on another pick.
"Make no mistake, the main part of this trade was the ability to acquire an asset that doesn't come up very often that's available," Zanik said.
The Jazz, though, won't be counting down the days until 2027 so they can use the pick. It's possible — and maybe even likely — that they won't even own it four years down the road.
WIth the deal, Utah cleared its books for next season, and can have up to $60 million of cap space this summer. The deal also allows the Jazz to make deals without matching salaries. All that makes it pretty easy to complete future trades.
"It allows us to envision endless possibilities of how we can build this roster," Zanik said of the trade.
On the eve of the trade deadline, the Phoenix Suns added four first round picks into a package to get Kevin Durant from the Brookyln Nets. The Jazz are now in a position to do a similar deal down the road.
"There's no transaction of that level that we're not going to be involved in if it makes sense, because we have the ability to do those," Zanik said. "So I'm excited about that if that comes up."
With 15 first-round picks through 2029, Zanik pointed out the Jazz "could do that type of a trade multiple times."
When will those start? He doesn't know. The NBA is an unpredictable business. Just a month ago the Nets had won 12 games in a row and looked to be a title contender. This week, they traded both their perennial All-Stars in Durant and Kyrie Irving.
But when the next star becomes available, the Jazz can outbid just about anybody. Zanik noted that some teams — like the Oklahoma City Thunder — also have a comparable number of picks, but he believes the Jazz's have the best picks in terms of quality.
"That's why you do deals like this, to be flexible, to be very opportunistic when those opportunities arise," Zanik said. "They don't come up often, but sometimes they come up and then you just don't have the firepower to go do it, or you're not in the right set of team building."
Utah has added to its firepower. Now fans will have to wait for them to pull the trigger.
