Boom! While this Friday afternoon was dead calm in the corridors of the editorial staff of TrashTalk, here is a nice plaster of Free Agency info is served to us by Michael Scotto from HoopsHype. In the program ? Heavy, since according to the insider, discussions have been initiated between the Knicks, the Lakers and the Jazz around a very big transfer which could include Donovan Mitchell, Russell Westbrook, but also Patrick Beverley and Draft picks. We take stock, and long live the month of August!
Everyone is therefore not on vacation the first half of August in the NBA. This is heart-warming news, since it offers us great information like the one we are going to deal with now. Come on, let’s get to the heart of the matter without waiting. According to Michael Scotto, NBA insider at HoopsHype, discussions have taken place between Lakers, Knicks and New York. First information in there is that it could announce major movements in the workforce of these teams. If the current situation is not that of an intense Free Agency, we owe it to the complex situations of four players. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn, Russell Westbrook in LA and Donovan Mitchell at Jazz. If one of these names were to move, it might finally trigger the fall of all the other dominoes. It’s normal for everyone to be cautious, there’s no question of dropping the slightest interesting piece if ever an opportunity to recover a big player presented itself… logical.
These discussions between three teams could well launch the second part of the summer hostilities in earnest. So far, rumors have only indicated the Knicks’ interest in Donovan Mitchell. Information confirmed by Scotto, who explains that New York has sufficient elements to satisfy the Jazz. Draft picks, promising young people like Quentin Grimes and Obi Toppin for example. Be careful though because with such potential losses, the Knicks would mortgage their future quite heavily. At the same time, the Jazz would still need to transfer certain players who no longer have a particular interest in the franchise due to the reconstruction project being launched. Among these ? Patrick Beverley, Jordan Clarkson and Bojan Bogdanovic, Malik Beasley. These guys have their place in a team that plays the Playoffs, why keep them? We didn’t mention Mike Conley, but that’s normal. The latter is currently also cited in rumors, but which send him to Cleveland against Collin Sexton.
Sources: The Lakers, Knicks and Jazz discussed a three-team trade with Donovan Mitchell landing in New York, Patrick Beverley and another key Jazz player to the Lakers, Russell Westbrook on the move, and draft picks to Utah. More details on @hoopshype. https://t.co/AejGhQPKVK
—Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) August 5, 2022
This is where the Lakers would come in. Eager to strengthen their team overall by attracting players of a higher level, some names on this list would be welcome in Hollywood. According to Scotto? We are talking about two players, from the list of four mentioned above. Beverley would still be an element that would not move regardless of the scenario. Receiving is good, but giving is better. And with boys of this caliber to refourguer, the Jazz may charge big. Anyway big, there’s a way to average as the other would say. The Mormons’ project with the Lakers? Collect Russell Westbrook, and include the 2027 and 2029 Lakers picks in his suitcase. Picks with as little protection as possible, that’s gentlemen’s business. Of course, Russ would be cut in the process and could then engage freely wherever he wanted. The advantage for the Knicks in this mess? By including Los Angeles in the deal, they wouldn’t have to send their entire young guard to get Mitchell.
Overall – again according to Scotto – this would give us something like:
Lakers receive: Patrick Beverley + one of the three players: Bojan Bogdanovic, Malik Beasley, Jordan Clarkson
Utah receives: Russell Westbrook / Lakers 2027 and 2029 Draft picks / several Knicks Draft (first round) picks
Knicks receive: Donovan Mitchell
So much for the main lines. However, don’t take it all at face value. The Lakers are reportedly still interested in Cameron Reddish, whom they unsuccessfully tried to recruit from the 2021 Free Agency. By embedding themselves in this blockbuster trade, they could this time have the arguments to recover it. The same goes for the Knicks, who would zieuter Malik Beasley. Basketball advisor to the NY franchise, Gersson Rosas was the one at the Wolves who convinced Malik to sign in favor of Minny at the time… a detail that could be important.
We also understand through these rumors the importance for the Lakers to offload Russell Westbrook. Scotto indicates that many franchise executives in the league won’t want to host the 2017 MVP without the Lakers’ two draft rounds being included. In short, there are still many unknowns, but this table depicts one of the most serious scenarios concerning the Mitchell and Westbrook cases. And above all, it would satisfy all the stakeholders
So, what do you think about it? Here, we take all this information very carefully. First, it makes us happy to have crisp rumors like that to avoid melting even in the shade and help us overcome the heat wave. Second, this transfer could be the first domino of this Free Agency, and that’s a piece of cake.
Source: HoopsHype