Could Julius Randle be a Target for the Utah Jazz?

Rumor season is in full force for NBA teams no longer playing in the Orlando playoff bubble, and that includes those involving the Utah Jazz. A few days ago, some New York Knicks media members put out there that one of the #1 offseason priorities for the Knicks is to trade last year’s free agency acquisition Julius Randle.

One of the teams with supposed interest includes the Utah Jazz:

HAHAHAHAHA How about no.

Look, I don’t hate Julius Randle. He’s only a year removed from 21.4 points and 8.7 rebounds with 34.4% 3 point shooting for the Pelicans. New York asked him to be their #1 guy and he obviously isn’t capable of that. He’s a solid young player in the right role. And like the Sacramento Kings, everyone that leaves the Knicks organization seems to play significantly better for their new team.

But come on, the Utah Jazz did not trade two 1st round picks for Mike Conley just to turn around and trade him for Julius Randle. I mean, Dennis Lindsey literally just said in an interview that they are looking for guys with defensive integrity and athleticism. Does that sound like Julius Randle to you?

Could the Jazz be looking at moving on from Conley? Absolutely. But that would be selling a little low right now. He looked really good in the bubble, which may have gone unnoticed because the focus was deservedly on Donovan Mitchell’s absolute explosion. During the restart and playoffs Mike put up 18.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. He also shot over 45% from the floor and over 45% from 3 as well. Those are borderline All Star numbers just like we are used to with Conley throughout his career.

It also looked like his quickness was back and he was in more command of the offense. The Utah Jazz are absolutely not trading that for Julius Rande. And that’s coming from someone who has long held the belief that Donovan Mitchell needs to be the point guard for the Utah Jazz.

Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports

AND draft pick compensation!? That slam you hear is Justin Zanick hanging up the phone. So the Knicks are looking to dump Julius Randle and somehow that means the Jazz are including the draft pick compensation? Again, that’s not going to happen.

I enjoy speculation and hitting the trade machine as much as the next guy. But not in the fantasy land the Knicks are apparently living in by pushing that rumor out there.