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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz entered this week with the potential of having north of $40 million in cap space. Things changed quite a bit in the lead up to the start of free agency (negotiations can begin Friday at 4 p.m. MDT).
The Jazz took John Collins' hefty contract (three years, $78 million remaining) into their cap space; Talen Horton-Tucker opted in to the final year of his deal that will pay him $11 million; the Jazz, then, fully guaranteed Kelly Olynyk's $12.1 million contract; and, finally, Jordan Clarkson exercised his player option to remain on the Jazz roster.
So where does all that leave the Jazz now?
Roster spots
The Utah Jazz currently have 16 players under standard contracts (that doesn't include two-ways).
- John Collins, $25.3 million
- Collin Sexton, $17.3 million
- Lauri Markkanen, $17.2 million
- Jordan Clarkson, $14.2 million
- Kelly Olynyk, $12.1 million
- Talen Horton-Tucker, $11 million
- Ochai Agbaji, $4.1 million
- Simone Fontecchio, $3.0 million
- Walker Kessler, $2.8 million
- Damian Jones, $2.5 million
- Kris Dunn, $2.5 million (non-guaranteed)
- Luka Samanic, $2.0 million (non-guaranteed)
- Vernon Carey, $1.9 million (non-guaranteed)
The Jazz can clear some roster spots via trades, or by simply waiving a player. Kris Dunn, Luka Samanic and Vernon Carey Jr. all have non-guaranteed deals heading into next season, with the latter two most likely first to go, if needed.
Cap space/exceptions
Depending on what happens with Dunn, Samanic and Carey, the Jazz will have anywhere between $7.5 million and $13.4 million of cap room to spend in free agency. Utah will have $11.5 million in space if they waive Samanic and Carey Jr. (we're assuming they'll keep Dunn around).
Utah can also use the $7.7 million cap room exception once its cap space runs out.
The cap space and the exception can't be combined.
Players available
With the Collins trade, which can be viewed as a quasi-free-agent signing in its own right, and Clarkson opting in, the Jazz don't have the necessary cap space to chase some of this year's biggest gettable names (Fred VanVleet, D'Angelo Russell, Kyle Kuzma, etc.). They are even likely out of the range of the likes of Bruce Brown and Dillon Brooks and other players in that tier.
The Jazz have a stacked frontcourt and intriguing options on the wing, but (apologies to Horton-Tucker, Collin Sexton and Dunn) the team is lacking a true starting point guard, and that might be hard to come by in free agency.
Here's a look at some players the Jazz may target:
Tre Jones, 23, PG, San Antonio (restricted): It would probably take more than what the Jazz can offer to scare off the Spurs from matching, but he's a young point guard that doesn't make a lot of mistakes (but does struggle to shoot).
Dennis Schroder, 29, PG, Los Angeles Lakers: Schroder played a major part in the Lakers' playoff run this past spring. A good defender with some iffy decision making, but he can make the occasional open shot. The Lakers trusted him more than D'Angelo Russell against Denver in the Western Conference Finals.
Jevon Carter, 27, PG, Milwaukee: A strong on-ball defender who is a career 40% shooter from 3-point range, but he's not much of a creator or distributor. He's more of a 3-and-D player in a point guard's body.
Gabe Vincent, 27, PG, Miami: Vincent averaged 12.7 points and shot 38% from deep during Miami's run to the Finals. He might be a long-term backup, but it might be worth looking into whether he can translate his playoff run to a full season.
Coby White, 23, G, Chicago (restricted): White got much more efficient this season (he mostly stopped taking bad midrange jumpers). His passing is still limited — and as such, he's more of a combo guard than point guard — but he could be interesting at the right price. With how oft-injured the Bulls' guard line has been, they probably match anything the Jazz could offer.
Donte DiVincenzo, 26, W, Golden State: He shot 39.7% from 3-point range last year for the Warriors, and has rehabilitated his value. He's a decent secondary creator from the wing, and seems like he'd be a good fit within the Jazz system.
Josh Okogie, 24, W, Phoenix: Okogie is a strong and young defender at the shooting guard position. The Suns struggled to keep him on the court in the playoffs, due to his shooting, but given his age, his shot may still come around.
Jaylen Nowell, 23, W, Minnesota: Nowell is the rare unrestricted free agent coming off a rookie deal. He's a fun, score-first guard who is probably best suited coming off the bench — as of now. Maybe some new scenery will unlock a different, more efficient version of Nowell.
Mo Wagner, 26, C, Orlando: The other Wagner in Orlando averaged 10.5 points in just 19 minutes per game. If he can find a 3-point shot — his high free-throw shooting suggests he may have it in him — those offensive numbers get even better. Sure, he's not a good defender, but he could be a fun — and relatively cheap — offensive weapon.
Paul Reed, 24, C, Philadelphia (restricted): Want a low usage player who will instantly turn into a fan favorite? Look no further than "B-ball Paul." He averaged over three steals and three blocks per 100 possessions and had a 20.5% rebound rate.
What about trades?
Utah still has a chest full of future picks, a handful of young assets, and now have money in expiring deals that will help match any salary coming back. They can make a deal for anyone: Washington's Monte Morris and Orlando's Jalen Suggs are guards that could make sense for Utah to pursue in trade talks, or the Jazz could try and pull a sign-and-trade for someone like the Lakers' D'Angelo Russell. Or they could swing even bigger.
Jazz general manager Justin Zanik made it clear the team will be involved in just about every major blockbuster deal. Right now, there are rumors that Damian Lillard's time in Portland may be coming to an end, and the Jazz present an intriguing landing destination.
With their amount of young and future assets, the Jazz could dwarf anything Miami or Brooklyn (the two teams that have been most-heavily linked to Lillard) have to offer. Oh, and Lillard played at Weber State and once said he'd be open to playing for the Jazz.
Odds are that won't happen, but those are the moves the Jazz are in position to make — and will be for years to come.
