In a head-scratching move, Utah shipped away Collin Sexton and a second-round pick to the Hornets for Jusuf Nurkic.
Considering the players involved in the deal and the fact that both teams didn’t perform well last season, it’s a confusing move to most.
NBA analyst believes Sexton-Nurkic trade is a warning sign for an upcoming major trade
After the Jazz and Hornets made the trade, NBA analyst Bill Simmons went to social media to give his thoughts.
Simmons said, “This trade makes ZERO SENSE for Utah which means there has to be a much-bigger trade coming.”
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Sexton has been a much more valuable player than Nurkic, who was recently traded away mid-season by the Suns to get off his contract.
Both Sexton and Nurkic are on similar contracts that expire after next season, which makes the reasoning behind the trade odd.
As mentioned, the Jazz weren’t very good last season, but they might be active this offseason, as they have desirable assets that championship-level teams would trade for.
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Sexton was a name on that list, but now, with him gone, we turn to names like Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler.
Kessler has been promising in his first couple of seasons, and many teams could use a young big like Kessler with his talent and low mileage so far in his career.
Markkanen is an established all-star caliber forward that could be one of the better names available on the trade market if he’s available.
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He’s just a couple of seasons removed from when he averaged 25.6 PPG.
Utah has failed to make the playoffs the last three seasons, so they’ll have to turn the tide sooner rather than later.
It’s not known what type of deals could occur yet, but sooner than later, Utah will have to start to create a roster that’s more competitive and serious than it has been.
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