Since the 2020 offseason, rumors have been continuously swirling around veteran wingman DeMar DeRozan and his future with the San Antonio Spurs. As of now, the Spurs have yet to make DeRozan available on the trading block . But with his contract expiring after the 2020-21 NBA season, most people believe that it would be best for them to move him before the March 25 trade deadline than take the risk of losing him in the free agency period without getting anything in return. One of the teams that could express a strong interest in acquiring DeRozan this season is the Utah Jazz.
The Jazz may be currently sitting in the No. 1 spot in the Western Conference, but there are still plenty of things that they arguably should improve on in order to have a better chance of reaching the NBA Finals and capturing the Larry O’Brien Trophy. These include their isolation scoring. To address one of their biggest weaknesses, Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report suggested that the Jazz could send a package centered on Bojan Bogdanovic to the Spurs in exchange for DeRozan.
“The Jazz are dead last in the NBA in isolation points per game (2.7 points) on the worst efficiency (.56 points per possessions). Even Donovan Mitchell is averaging just 1.6 isolation points per game, and the Jazz could use another player who can put his head down and get a bucket in the postseason with the game on the line. DeMar DeRozan has long been one of the game’s best one-on-one players and is tied for eighth this season with Luka Doncic at 3.6 isolation points per game. Not only does that dwarf the entire Jazz team, but DeRozan is also doing it on strong efficiency (1.21 points per possession).”
DeRozan could be an incredible addition to Utah. Though he remains hesitant to shoot the ball from beyond the arc, he’s still a very reliable contributor on the offensive end of the floor. He could give the Jazz another prolific scorer behind Donovan Mitchell, as well as a decent playmaker and rebounder. This season, the 31-year-old forward/guard is averaging 20.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.8 assists, and one steal while shooting 47.3 percent from the field, per ESPN .
Swartz believes that a starting lineup featuring Mike Conley, Mitchell, DeRozan, Royce O’Neale, and Rudy Gobert could give the Jazz a strong chance of beating Western Conference powerhouse teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers in a best-of-seven series.
Meanwhile, Bogdanovic could be an interesting replacement for DeRozan in San Antonio. Aside from his ability to space the floor, his contract also runs until the 2022-23 NBA season. However, to convince the Spurs to send DeRozan to Utah, the Jazz may still need to add a future draft asset to the package.