4. Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz’s position on this list could change in the coming weeks. They have made their intentions clear this offseason with the moves that they have made; they want to get younger and have an eye toward the future.
For Royce O’Neale, they received a 2023 first-round draft pick. For Rudy Gobert, they received four first-round picks and a pick swap from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Leandro Bolmaro and Walker Kessler were also involved. Beverly has since been flipped to the Los Angeles Lakers for Talen Horton-Tucker and Stanley Johnson.
Those are moves that a team looking to rebuild makes. However, there is one thing keeping the Utah Jazz from going all-in on a rebuild and that is Donovan Mitchell. The three-time All-Star remains on the roster and as long as he is donning a Jazz uniform, they are not contenders for the No. 1 pick.
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But, he has been involved in plenty of trade rumors this offseason. Danny Ainge isn’t in a rush to move him and the franchise reportedly has no issues holding into him into the regular season. However, for their rebuild to truly get underway, he needs to be traded.
If Mitchell is moved, the Jazz would vault up this list. If he remains on the team, they will fall off the list as Mitchell is good enough to win games by himself.
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That conundrum is why the Utah Jazz land at No. 4 on this list. They have made moves signaling they want a rebuild, but Mitchell’s presence on the roster says otherwise.