Utah Jazz: Analyzing the decision to trade Rodney Hood, Joe Johnson
The Utah Jazz have agreed to trade Rodney Hood to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Joe Johnson to the Sacramento Kings. We take a deeper look at the three-team trade.
NBA trade deadline day is done, and it certainly didn’t disappoint.
With less than two hours left to go before Thursday’s 3 p.m. (ET) trade deadline, the Utah Jazz executed their first trade before the clock struck zero.
As first reported by ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski, Utah has traded away both Rodney Hood and Joe Johnson in a three-team trade with the Sacramento Kings and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
In return, the Jazz will receive forward Jae Crowder and point guard Derrick Rose.
According to Wojnarowski, the full trade looks like this: Sacramento will receive Johnson (from Utah) and Iman Shumpert (from Cleveland). Utah will receive Crowder and Rose, while Cleveland will receive Hood (from Utah) and George Hill (from Sacramento).
From the Jazz side of things, the deal makes sense and is a nice move for the future in Salt Lake City.
For one, Utah achieves its goal of shedding the expiring contracts of Hood and Johnson, both of whom expected to be moved before the deadline.
Crowder, a 27-year-old small forward, has averaged 8.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 0.8 steals in 25.4 minutes per game this season. In 53 appearances, he is shooting 41.8 percent from the field and 32.8 percent from 3-point range.
Crowder also provides a need at the small forward position in Utah that the Jazz have been looking to fill since Gordon Hayward left for Boston in free agency. He has a guaranteed contract through the 2019-20 season, making about $7 million a year through the end of that contract.
With Rose, a 29-year-old point guard, the Jazz will reportedly release the veteran point guard, according to Yahoo! Sports‘ Shams Charania:
Rose, who is making just over $2 million in a the last year of his contract, is averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 19.3 minutes per game this season. In 16 appearances, he is shooting 43.9 percent from the field and 25 percent from behind the arc.
For Cleveland, Hood will provide the Cavs with instant scoring, either off the bench or even in the starting lineup. Hood heads to Cleveland averaging a career-high 16.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game, while shooting 42.4 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from 3.
For Sacramento, Johnson will likely be a prime buyout candidate after the trade deadline, as Johnson has said previously that he wants to compete for a championship near the end of his career. It would be pretty surprising if the Kings end up hanging onto Johnson.
Next: NBA Trade Grades - Cavs acquire Rodney Hood in 3-team trade
The madness that is the NBA trade deadline has once again left us trying to find our bearings, and the Jazz have been in the middle of it all, sending away a few pieces while bringing at least one new face back to Salt Lake City as Utah focuses more on the future moving forward.