Trade talks between the Utah Jazz and New York Knicks over Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell have stalled, according to the Athletic’s Shams Charania. In the meantime the Jazz have continued talks with other interested teams, including the Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards.
The Knicks remain the focus for a potential Mitchell trade. New York possesses a huge trump card with eight first-round draft picks at their disposal. But it’s apparent the Knicks aren’t so quick to give up on the number of picks the Jazz request. As talks cool off and the Knicks stand their ground, the Wizards can lurk around and stay in the ears of Jazz CEO of basketball operations Danny Ainge.
Earlier this week, Charania revealed the Wizards were among seven teams that expressed their interest in Mitchell.
Wizards general manager and president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard is known for staying aggressive in the trade market. He is not afraid to push send on a blockbuster trade. He did so in 2020, moving John Wall to Houston for Russell Westbrook.
History repeated itself twice last season. First, Sheppard traded Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Kyle Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Montrezl Harrell just ahead of the season. Then before the trade deadline, he traded Spencer Dinwiddie and David Bertans to Dallas for Kristaps Porzingis.
The Wizards need one more star player to add next to Bradley Beal in order to compete in the Eastern Conference. Washington doesn’t have the draft capital as the Knicks. A first-round pick included in the Wall-Westbrook trade is protected through 2026. However, they do have viable players they could send Utah for Mitchell.
Presumably, some sort of combination between Kuzma, Porzingis, first-round draft pick Johnny Davis, Rui Hachimura and Deni Avdija is likely to be included in the deal to get Mitchell.
It’s still a long shot until it’s not. Sheppard is willing to do anything to improve the Wizards roster. The longer talks between Knicks and Jazz stall, the more Wizards’ chances of landing Mitchell increase.
