Jazz Cuts Ties With Gobert But Receives Huge Haul In Exchange: Report

Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz and Rudy Gobert #27 talk against the New Orleans Pelicans during a game at the Smoothie King Center on January 06, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Utah Jazz is trying to figure out how to find the best combination of players to get over the NBA playoff hump, and it appears achieving this goal means giving up one of their tallest and most fierce defensive weapons, Rudy Gobert.

After weeks of speculation, the French center was finally traded. Gobert is headed to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for a huge haul made up of five players and five future picks, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported, citing unnamed sources. International Business Times could not independently verify this information.

According to the report, the Timberwolves sent Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Walker Kessler, Leandro Bolmaro and Jarred Vanderbilt to the Jazz, a large haul of players that could give Utah more options next season.

Moreover, the deal also gives the Jazz more assets for the future. The T-Wolves sent unprotected first-rounders in 2023, 2025 and 2027 as well as an unprotected swap in 2026 to the Jazz. There is even a top-five protected pick in 2029 included in the transaction.

As for the Timberwolves, the arrival of Gobert allows them to boast a lethal twin tower combination. The three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year could combine forces with Karl-Anthony Towns for a tandem that will cover both offense and defense.

Further, the Timberwolves are looking good with their starting unit for the 2022-23 season. In addition to Towns and Gobert, Minnesota may have a starting five that also includes D’Angelo Russell, Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels.

Although impressive, head coach Chris Finch may still need to address the supporting cast of the Timberwolves, which could mean that more moves may be made this NBA offseason.

For the Jazz, the obvious recourse right now is to build around Donovan Mitchell. The departure of Gobert raises questions at the center, but there are available players such as Deandre Ayton whom Utah may consider, NBC Sports reported.

Regardless, the decisions and task of improving the run of the Jazz for the 2022-23 wars rest on the shoulder of new head coach Will Hardy. He could improve on the efforts of Quin Snyder, who led the Jazz to the playoffs but failed to go deep in previous years.