RJ Barrett, Tyler Herro eyeing max contracts

Zach Lowe and Tim MacMahon appear to be in agreement that their reporting suggests RJ Barrett won’t be a dealbreaker in the Utah Jazz discussions on a Donovan Mitchell trade with the New York Knicks. “The Jazz desire to get him is unclear to me,” said Zach Lowe. “He might not be the dealbreaker people think it is.” -via RealGM / July 16, 2022

The Knicks naturally hope to complete the actual acquisition of Donovan Mitchell now without surrendering more than, say, four or five of those eight future firsts and by keeping RJ Barrett out of the deal. While Barrett’s exclusion is likely fine with the Jazz, Utah (gulp) is said to want at least six of the eight picks. -via marcstein.substack.com / July 15, 2022

The Knicks have put out word that 22-year-old guard RJ Barrett, preparing for his fourth season, will not be available in trades, even in a blockbuster deal for Mitchell, whom New York has targeted for about a year. But one Eastern Conference general manager says that fact was mostly met with shrugs because of Barrett’s contract situation. Barrett is entering the final year of his rookie scale contract. -via Heavy.com / July 15, 2022

However, the Knicks are not the only team interested in Mitchell. The Miami Heat have been interested in both Kevin Durant and Donovan Mitchell over recent weeks. But their stable of young pieces and picks simply isn’t as attractive as New York’s. The Heat have traded their 2025 first-round pick away, meaning that they can only offer their 2023 pick, their 2027 pick, and their 2029 pick, along with pick swaps in the other years. The Heat also have a deficit of young players compared to New York. 22-year-old Tyler Herro is a good piece, but Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, and Omer Yurtseven are older and on shorter contracts than their key Knicks’ counterparts. -via Salt Lake Tribune / July 14, 2022

The Heat made an offer weeks ago for Mitchell that included nearly all of those pieces, but the Jazz found it insufficient. At that time, sources tell the Tribune, the Jazz and Heat agreed that a third team that might be necessary in the trade in order to bring more value to the Jazz — likely meaning that the Heat would have to send veteran pieces elsewhere to get younger player or pick value in return. -via Salt Lake Tribune / July 14, 2022

At least one voice in the Jazz’s front office prefers Herro as a return to Barrett, according to a source. Essentially, Tyler Herro’s likelihood of being a cheaper contract moving forward and his more advanced shooting stroke are reasons for optimism. RJ Barrett, to be sure, is longer, younger, and has much more defensive potential, though. -via Salt Lake Tribune / July 14, 2022