The Utah Jazz plan to keep disgruntled big man Enes Kanter despite his public desire to be traded, according to Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune.
Enes Kanter will only get traded for ‘amazing offer,’ according to reports
The Jazz will listen to trade offers for the disgruntled Kanter, but a deal isn’t likely unless a team steps up with a monster offer.
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Kanter has become frustrated with his role this season, even though he has started in all but one game and still plays significant minutes. The 22-year-old -- who is set to become a restricted free agent in the summer -- said prior to the All-Star break that he hoped to be traded, and his agent confirmed that desire.
But while the Jazz will listen to trade offers, there are no plans to make a deal unless there’s an “amazing offer.” Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski reports that there’s a “significant threshold” for a Kanter deal, including at least a young player and a first-round pick.
Wojnarowski says several teams are in pursuit of Kanter, and Sam Smith of Bulls.com names the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks as interested parties.
Is Kanter still in Utah's long-term plans despite the emergence of Rudy Gobert? Or will the Jazz cave to the trade demands?
Why Jazz will keep Kanter
Having quality frontcourt depth is always nice, and the Jazz have a solid group of big men with Kanter, Gobert, Derrick Favors and Trevor Booker. Kanter has been a productive player this season, averaging 13.8 points and 7.8 rebounds. He's not much of a passer and plays little defense, but at 22, he still has time to improve.
Furthermore, as a restricted free agent, Utah can match any offer sheet Kanter signs. So as SLC Dunk notes, the Jazz don’t have to trade the youngster if they don’t want to:
“We all see that scenario playing out. The Jazz don’t have to trade him if they don’t want to. He’s a restricted free agent. He’s still a developing project. He most likely is going to be the third big in what is going to be a very potent big man three of Favors, Gobert, and himself. While Kanter might not be happy about the current status of not starting, once the guard play and additional prospects from the draft start coming in I think he’ll appreciate winning a lot more than any starting position.”
Even with Gobert developing, Kanter could still play a significant role on an improving team, and the Jazz believe they can smooth out any issues the two sides have.
SB Nation presents: Awesome NBA trades that SHOULD happen, but never will.
Why Jazz will trade Kanter
While he’s still young, Kanter’s poor passing and weak defense is troubling. The big man has just 26 assists all year, and there has been little development on the defensive end. Kanter offers little to no rim protection, an area in which Gobert already excels at his young age.
While Utah can match any offer sheet Kanter signs, there’s no guarantee that happens, especially if another team gets bold and offers big money. Based on contract negotiations from last fall, there’s a large chasm between the Jazz’s valuation of Kanter and his own valuation of himself:
Here's how far apart Jazz and Enes Kanter were last fall: Utah offered 4 years, $32M, but Kanter's camp wanted Hayward-type money. #sources
— Jody Genessy (@DJJazzyJody) February 17, 2015 If Utah doesn’t want to shell out big money to Kanter, the smart move may be to bite the bullet and trade him so he’s not lost for nothing. The Jazz could also take the chance that no other teams will make a big offer, but all it takes is one desperate team with money to spend. With Gobert and Favors already in the fold, a Kanter trade wouldn’t set Utah back all that much.
Likelihood of Kanter staying in Utah
The way it stands now, it’s looking like the Jazz will keep Kanter because the asking price is too high. But if Utah lowers that asking price, a deal could get done. I’ll give Kanter sticking around with the Jazz a 6/10 chance of happening.
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