The Utah Jazz reportedly are very interested in Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic.
The Athletic’s John Hollinger first shared the rumblings about Utah’s interest in Doncic, and the Salt Lake Tribune’s Andy Larsen revealed that he’s heard similar things ahead of the offseason.
“I’ve heard similar things, for what it’s worth,” Larsen wrote. “I don’t have spies, but I do have sources within the Jazz organization, who say that the Jazz are keenly interested in Doncic. That being said, it’s also fair to say that the Jazz are ‘keeping a very interested eye’ on many stars around the league — they want to use at least some of those draft picks acquired in the Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert trades on acquiring a star in the trade market.”
Utah has a plethora of draft capital to trade, making it a prime candidate to land a disgruntled star in the trade market. While Doncic recently signed an extension with Dallas, things didn’t go as expected for the Mavs this season.
Dallas failed to make the play-in tournament in the Western Conference in the 2022-23 season, a massive failure considering Doncic is one of the best players in the NBA. The team also moved assets for guard Kyrie Irving at the trade deadline, but the pairing did not work.
Irving is an unrestricted free agent this offseason, so Dallas could potentially lose him for nothing if he decides to sign elsewhere.
During the 2022-23 regular season, it was clear that Dallas greatly missed Jalen Brunson, who played well alongside Doncic last season. The Mavs made the Western Conference Finals last season with Brunson on the roster, but he decided to sign with the New York Knicks in the offseason.
New York exceeded expectations this season with Brunson in the fold, making it to the second round of the playoffs.
The Jazz also exceeded expectations this season, nearly earning a spot in the play-in tournament despite moving on from several players before and during the 2022-23 season.
Utah has a solid young core, and it seems to believe that Doncic might the perfect star to take the franchise to the next level.
The team’s interest in Doncic is great, but the Mavs star is going to need to want out from Dallas if the Jazz have any chance of getting him in a trade. However, another down season from the Mavericks could force Doncic’s hand to get to a better situation.
