Utah Jazz Reporter, Tony Jones, Joins The Show To Talk Markkanen Trade

Utah Jazz Reporter, Tony Jones, Joins The Show To Talk Markkanen Trade

none other than Tony Jones of the athletic helps cover the Utah Jazz and uh Tony thank you so much for hopping on with us today how are you my gu I appreciate you thank you so much well uh Jason I I know this is this is your guy I appreciate you helping us getting this on and uh Tony I just first wanted to kind of discuss I don’t know I guess the the the big fish I’ve been calling him the big fin that everybody has been trying to figure out is if he’s coming or not to to Golden State and that is Lorie Markin and I know that you mentioned earlier in the week that there had been you know substantial offers on the table but I just kind of wanted to start there and ask if there’s been any progress and sort of what you’ve been hearing along the the market and trade lines well I mean I would say this you know from from Utah standpoint their stance on on trading Lowry or not trading Lowry has been the same you know for almost a year you know their standpoint is we don’t want to trade Lowry so if you are going to trade for Lowry there has to be a high threshold that has to be met and you know the offer is going to have to blow us away and you know what that offer is what that offer isn’t the only people that can answer that for the Utah Jazz are the Utah Jazz themselves and you know it it makes it a scenario where you know you you could get a trade you know in the next 24 to 48 48 hours or you can get a trade in the next year or you cannot get a trade at all and you know the the you know if if different than Donovan Mitchell and and and Rudy gobear I think the Jazz um you know had motivation uh with for different reasons with both of those guys that trade uh both of those guys there’s no motivation to trade Larry Markin and he’s a star level player who is happy in Utah and you know who the the Jazz field can grow uh with the young guys on their roster so if you know they are going to trade Lowry it’s it’s got to be a threshold uh that has to be met and only they can answer that question well I was going to ask Tony from from understanding you know more certainly than us about about the Utah Jazz you know what do you feel like is is an offer that might blow them away if that’s indeed what they are looking for what what do you think it would take from Golden State I’m not sure what it would take because I I do know you know like like like the reports are said out there that golden state has you you know an offer on the table and you know and I feel you know it’s just it’s it’s a substantial offer um but you know the Jazz can only answer that for themselves what they’re looking for and I think it’s it’s kind of remiss that a lot of people have been trying to speak for the Jazz in terms of in terms of what they want in terms of what they would accept uh as an offer that they would that they would deem acceptable um but you know I do think that it’s really interesting thing um that you know teams have really ramped up you know their interest and ramped up their level of aggression uh over the last two or three weeks and you know and frankly I think that that’s where a lot of the the talk and the chatter and the noise has has come from you know I think that there’s one set of thoughts uh from you know teams and uh from from people that are are chasing Lowry and there’s another set of thoughts from the Utah as themselves in terms of whether they want to trade Lowry or not so you know it’ll be interesting to see what actually transpires um but you know I I I do think that you know the the level uh of offers that are out there are are substantial uh I think that they’re uh heavily pick based and you know and I think that uh with a couple of the offers there’s you know a young player or two out there uh that has a potential that has the potential to grow over the course of this career have Ton’s being diplomatic Tony tell these folks in the Bay Area to get on with their holiday weekend Lori marinin ain’t coming here I don’t think Mike dun leevy H has the stomach to go back and forth with Danny a he’s made a career out of taking advantage of people really well I’ll say this about Danny a it’s not you’re not you’re not going to cheap out on Danny Danny a just you know that’s just you know one thing that you know is is never going to happen so you know it is kind of funny reading some of the some of the the the potential offers on Twitter and you know or actt we calling we calling it Twitter or we calling it X are we calling it Twitter still yeah Twitter because I’m never calling it X but you know I think is kind of funny you know some of some of the offers well you know will Danny a take you know off the reason two first round pick I I I will say this I think one thing that complicates Golden State’s package is that they only have two and a half you know essentially two and a half first round picks that are tradeable you have 26 unprotected you have 28 unprotected um but the third first round pick is protected from 1 through 20 which essentially means it’s not a first round pick because if it’s if it conveys it conveys in the 20s and you know it’s not really a first round pick if it conveys in the 20s so you know I think that that’s one thing that you know would complicate the package and you do have to work around that if if you’re you’re the Golden State Warriors and I think that the other thing that complicates the package is you look at what Mel Bridges went for a couple of weeks ago he went for he he went for five first and it wasn’t just five first it was five first plus swaps plus boan bogdanovic which you know I I I firmly think that that Brooklyn’s going to throw him in circulation he’s going to average 17 to 20 points a game and then they’re going to flip him for another first at the tra at the February trade deadline so I think that at the end of the day that package is going to be six first for Michel Bridget so you know I think that all of that stuff has to be uh taken into consideration when when you think about you know what Lowry marketing could have could not potentially go for now tone you’ve been covering the jazzz for a while you’re very tapped in and you know what type of players that they’re attracted to you know how they develop their players you know the type of style of basketball they play do you think Jonathan kaminga is a type of talent and player that a team like Utah and Danny a would value and of course that’s not to say they don’t think he’s a good player but you know what type of players and the schemes they play is someone of Jonathan kinga’s skill set someone that you think Danny a and the Utah Jazz organization would value I think that if you’re a Golden State Warriors fan and you really really really like Jonathan kaminga I think that your safe here yeah I I’ll just it that way um you know I think that kaminga is a dynamic uh an electric talent I think that he’s uh somebody um who has gotten a lot better over the last year to a year and a half I think he’s somebody who’s figured out that it’s very hard uh for for the rest of the NBA to stay in front of him off the dribble and I think because of that I think that he’s also somebody who’s going to command $200 million very very soon and I don’t know if the Utah Jazz are in a position uh to want to take somebody back who they’re gonna have to pay $200 million to so if you’re go ahead oh no no I I was going to say I think you’re your spot on because the news earlier today about France Vagner getting the rookie Max might drive someone like kaminga price up yeah absolutely and the fact that you know it let’s say you know the Jazz trade with the Warriors and you know let’s let’s say that kind of trade goes through and let’s say Jonathan kaminga is in the trade let’s be just be hypothetical here Jonathan kaminga is going to you know score 20 20 to 25 points a game on a team that’s going to win 17 to 22 uh games on the season so that means you’re going to be you know if you’re the Jazz you’re going to probably be nowhere close um and you’re going to have to pay somebody you know a basically a rookie Max uh a second a second contract Max um very soon so if you’re the Jazz and you decide you make the decision to trade L marketing I mean you’re making the decision to clear the the to clear the deck so if if you’re making that decision then you know I don’t think that you want to pay some have to pay somebody that kind of money uh just one year later so you know I think I I think that if if you’re Golden State hypothetically speaking I think that you’re you’re safe with kaminga longtime NBA reporter and writer Tony Jones joining us here on 957 the game covers the Jazz for the athletic Tony I’m curious since Lori marinan may or may not available to someone like Golden State but also just taking a look at the NBA you know we’ve seen Bridges be moved Paul George ended up signing with Philadelphia um there’s not a ton of quote big fish out there but if you are a team not necessarily Golden State but if you’re a team out there that’s trying to acquire a player most likely via trade like who do you think is the most I guess attainable big name left on the market um you know like I said with with Lowry I mean I think it could go one or three ways I mean you know maybe Utah wakes up you know tomorrow says hey you know we have a package that we we would accept and we would trade Lowry and that would make Lowry the biggest the biggest fish but you know I think the one that you know you have to look at I think you obviously have to look at Brandon Ingram down in New Orleans um because I think that you know there’s some motivation there uh from from new so everybody needs to stay out of the second apron the entire NBA the you know I don’t know how much people realize you know that how how destructive uh and how constrictive a team being in the second apron is it’s it’s actually amazing that the Warriors have been able to get as much done uh flirting with with with with that threshold that they have this this off season so you know if you’re you’re New Orleans I I think that there’s some motivation there with Brandon Ingram um you know I think that obviously Demar de rozen’s out there and you know Adrian was norowski just reported that you know going him going back to Chicago uh isn’t an option anymore so you know I think that those are the two guys that you look at and then you know I think that there always some there’s always somebody that we don’t know uh and that we we can’t really see and then one day boom you know it’s it’s done and there’s a trade and we’re all like oh my God we didn’t realize this guy was on the market to begin with so you know I think that there’s a lot of offseason left uh I think that you know because of the the new CBA uh I think that slowed free agency down considerably you know so I think that you’re going to see a lot of stuff um you know play out over the last over the next two months and I think that you’re going to see stuff uh play out you know later uh in in the offseason than it typically does this is Tony Jones of the athletic NBA reporter he covers the Utah Jazz he covers the Denver Nuggets and he’s as tapped in as any NBA reporter across the country one more question for you tone before I let you get out of here you mentioned him just now in your last answer to Evan uh it seems like demard de rozan is likely on his way to Sacramento just personal opinion how do you like that fit with him next to the uh Fox and on that roster how do you see that fitting and coming together well if he’s replacing har if he’s replacing Harrison Barnes then Sacramento’s won no matter what the fit is um because you know simp but they just need a better player uh in that position than Harrison Barnes is and um you know I know that that you know we’re living in a in a world where you shoot three-pointers um you know but we’re also in a world where you know in the playoffs guys that can go and get it from 16 17 to 18 uh feet are are very very valuable it’s the same thing with Jonathan kaminga we’re living in a world where guys that can put Rim pre that can generate Rim pressure are extremely valuable whether they can shoot threes or not so you know if Sacramento were to um figure out a way to to to get DeMar rosen I mean the fit isn’t the cleanest because you know he obviously doesn’t play above the three-point line and he obviously needs the ball in his hands um but when you get to a playoff scenario and you got to go and and put the ball in somebody’s hands and you know tell that guy to go and get a bucket DeMar rosen is still one of the best we have in this league so you know from that from that standpoint you know Sacramento will have won uh if you know he’s at that fourward spot instead of Harrison buns that’s Tony Jones tone thank you so much did you get those five miles in [Music] yesterday bro I did not Tony’s my guy not I got to say this I I am so mad I popped my achilles before I got to get out on the court with tone cuz he is a Hooper he’s been he hooped in college you still run fives does he oh yeah I still run fives yeah oh my absolutely T Tony T ton a hoop man one of my one of my guys one of my closest friends in his business we really really appreciate your time Tony keep doing what you do man and uh I’ll see you soon enough next time I see you I’ll probably be out of this boot thank you Tony man

Dumas and Giddings talk to Tony Jones, Utah Jazz reporter for The Athletic, about whether a trade for Markkanen is viable

Download the Audacy app to never miss any of your favorite 957 The Game content:
https://go.audacy.com/y-listen-live-957thegame

Listen live: https://www.audacy.com/957thegame/listen
Visit our website: https://www.957thegame.com
Subscribe on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/957thegame
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/957thegame
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/957thegame
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/957thegame/
Join our Newsletter: https://www.audacy.com/957thegame/join-our-clubs/mvp-club